British Airways passengers will have to pay to choose their seats before they travel, the struggling airline has announced.

The new charges will affect people who want to ensure they sit together on a flight and anyone with a preference for window, aisle or emergency exit seats.

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/5/20090925/tuk-ba-passengers-to-pay-more-to-sit-tog-45dbed5.html

BA are going to out-do them selves with this one.

i couldnt agree more. . .

With some of the policies BA have and are implenting they sure are heading down south.

Last year, they reduced bagging allowance to 23kg and started charging exorbitant fees for any luggage that's over 23kg PLUS an even more ridiculous charge for carrying extra luggage(s).

I've always flown BA but with this development. . . .hmmmm . .

As for me am a virgin traveller

they culdnt pay all dere staff for a month, dey cant even manage there former routes, Virgin Atlantic was right to block BA merginG with Delta Airline, i dont even know y ppl still fly dat Rude,useless airline, hissssssssssss, has anyone tried ARIK to London its simple da bomb

MrCrackles:

BA is a bloody rip off. . .
I am worried other airlines might follow suit. . .

Thats y ppl shuld fly oda airline, i knew BA was a joke right 4rm time

Arik is the bomb.

kuzina:

Arik is the bomb.

Are you kiddin me?
Arik is a pile of doo-doo

2 or 3 months ago, Arik Air knew they weren't travelling to nowhere but they had the cheek to check passengers in.
They had a back-log of passengers at Heathrow that went as far back as 4 days.
The bloody Airline couldn't come up with any tangible excuse.
The contact centres in Nigeria and England were clueless.

Even though BA are going through a hard time, they are still the best in the world.
BA would have to do something grave before i could consider Arik or any other airline.

OMO IBO:

Are you kiddin me?
Arik is a pile of doo-doo

2 or 3 months ago, Arik Air knew they weren't travelling to nowhere but they had the cheek to check passengers in.
They had a back-log of passengers at Heathrow that went as far back as 4 days.
The bloody Airline couldn't come up with any tangible excuse.
The contact centres in Nigeria and England were clueless.

Even though BA are going through a hard time, they are still the best in the world.
BA would have to do something grave before i could consider Arik or any other airline.

You mean Arik Air too has started this shite Heaven help Nigeria

haven't flown BA in a while, don't plan too. my last encounter with them was nasty.

Only thing good about them is their schedule.The are always on time.

@OMO IBO

Are you sure that was Arik Air? what you have described bears the hallmark of Bellview and their issues for the past month or so. If anybody else heard of this incident with Arik Air, please post o, so that everyone will be on the look out. I have booked my ticket to Naija for Christmas with them and I am quietly praying that there will be no drama.

As for BA, they may just have shot themselves in the foot with this. Just try to make back their loss from the customers, which frankly in my opinion is disgusting. Is it not standard or even common sense that families who book together and check in together should seat together without having to pay extra for that privilege. So that means if some people have paid the extra in advance to secure preferred seats, on the day of travel at check in, I come with my family of four and because there are no longer four empty seats together, my 3 year old will sit next to a stranger, while 5 year old next to another, hubby somewhere else and moi, sitting by the toilet.

What a load of crap. Good luck BA, lets see how this pans out.

JJM:

@OMO IBO

Are you sure that was Arik Air? what you have described bears the hallmark of Bellview and their issues for the past month or so. If anybody else heard of this incident with Arik Air, please post o, so that everyone will be on the look out. I have booked my ticket to Naija for Christmas with them and I am quietly praying that there will be no drama.

As for BA, they may just have shot themselves in the foot with this. Just try to make back their loss from the customers, which frankly in my opinion is disgusting. Is it not standard or even common sense that families who book together and check in together should seat together without having to pay extra for that privilege. So that means if some people have paid the extra in advance to secure preferred seats, on the day of travel at check in, I come with my family of four and because there are no longer four empty seats together, my 3 year old will sit next to a stranger, while 5 year old next to another, hubby somewhere else and moi, sitting by the toilet.

What a load of crap. Good luck BA, lets see how this pans out.

You ask if i'm sure??
well, im 110% sure.

I won't even touch Bellview with a barge pole

It actually happened to my mum.

To add to the praise of BA. We went over to terminal 5 after getting fedup with Arik Air and they got my mum in a flight to lagos just 3 hours before departure time. Now beat that!

Perhaps Arik Air were having an off day(trying to console myself with that thought). I know on their website, they have in advance published dates when certain flights will be cancelled "due to maintenance". I hold my breath for my journey in December and will post any dramas, fingers crossed there will be none.

Anyways all airlines have had cancellations at some point in their history, its the frequency, the level of inconvenience and mitigating customer's loss that reduces complaints.My brother once had VA flight cancelled and he was put up in a hotel overnight, flew out the next day and got a discount off next flight.

Bellview are just on another planet as far as customer service etc are concerned. Again as for BA, the success of this new policy of theirs remains to be seen.

Y wont dey get seat 4 sum1 goin 2 lag in 3 hours? Cuz dey aint gat nuf passengers jor! Try dt wit emirates or qatar.unless ur flyin 1st or biz class.anyways Arik stil rocks 2 moi.i hope dey start plyin D middle east also.