British Airways A380 First Class: Pleasant But Unmemorable

Hello from Chicago, as I just finished my wild review trip, after flying British Airways’ Airbus A380 first class from London to Chicago.

While I’ll have a full trip report soon, in this post I wanted to share my initial impressions of the experience on this eight hour daytime flight. Some may remember that earlier this year, I flew British Airways’ new 777 first class, and it was a pretty bad experience. By comparison, my impression of this flight was mostly favorable.

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The A380 first class hard product could definitely use a refresh (especially with tech), but the food was tasty, the amenities were good, and the service was well intentioned and friendly.

British Airways’ A380 first class seat is comfortable but outdated

Much like on Qantas, British Airways has first class on the lower deck of the Airbus A380. The cabin is quite large, with 14 seats, spread across four rows in a 1-2-1 configuration.

While there are benefits to being on the upper deck, there are also benefits to being on the lower deck, including the significantly wider fuselage, which makes the cabin feel more spacious.

British Airways’ A380 first class seats have a familiar design. They’re similar to the carrier’s old first class seats, but with a bit more space, though don’t have the upgraded tech you’ll find on the 787s and updated 777s.

I think the biggest downside to the seat was the outdated inflight entertainment system, which was rather low definition, and not very responsive. Then again, it’s no worse than Lufthansa’s A380 first class entertainment selection.

I also appreciate how British Airways has Wi-Fi on all of its Airbus A380s nowadays, and it’s even free for first class passengers.

British Airways’ first class amenities are great

British Airways has very nice amenities in first class. The amenity kit has to be one of the most densely packed ones out there, with Elemis skincare products, plus all the basics, from eyeshades to earplugs.

British Airways also has very nice pajamas in first class, as well as sturdy and comfortable slippers.

British Airways’ first class meal service is tasty

On this flight, lunch was served after takeoff, while afternoon tea was served before landing. If you can get over the lack of caviar in first class, British Airways has a pretty competitive meal service. I appreciate the variety of dishes available, as the airline has quite an extensive selection of appetizers and main courses to choose from.

The main meal service began with some canapés, including bresaola with melon, smoked salmon with cream cheese and cucumber, and red pepper roulade and goat cheese. While British Airways’ standard first class champagne is the respectable Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle, I decided to mix things up and try the carrier’s featured English sparkling wine, which was the 2018 Hattingley Valley Blanc de Noirs Brut.

I then had a carrot and ginger soup with a ricotta croquette, which was flavorful.

Next up was smoked salmon with wasabi dressing and avocado.

For the main course, I selected the pasta option, which was a ricotta ravioli with kale, asparagus, and peas.

Lastly for dessert, I ordered the Christmas option, which was the chocolate yule log.

Before landing, there was an afternoon tea service, which was of course tasty.

All-in-all, the food on this flight was quite good. I appreciated that unlike on my last British Airways first class flight, some effort was put into the presentation.

British Airways’ first class service was well intentioned

The service on this on this flight was better than the service that I’ve had on recent British Airways first class flights. The customer service manager was friendly and greeted each passenger upon boarding and prior to deplaning, while the flight attendant working my aisle was also kind and well intentioned.

I should also mention that this British Airways A380 flight was really empty — there were a total of under 175 passengers, with seven of the 14 first class seats taken. Despite the light load, service didn’t feel particularly attentive or polished.

For example, after the initial service of canapés, it took nearly an hour for the starter to be served, and that leisurely pace didn’t seem to be intentional (in the sense that there wasn’t a constant check to see if people wanted drink refills). Similarly, with the pre-arrival snack, I asked for a cappuccino as my drink, and that ended up showing up 15 minutes later, after I had finished the food.

I just found that puzzling when the cabin was only half full, because I wonder how slow service would have been if the cabin were actually full. There was a flight attendant working each aisle, so they each had three to four people to take care of.

Ultimately I think it just comes down to being realistic with benchmarking service. British Airways offers service that’s more in line with what you’d get on a US carrier than what you’d get on an Asian carrier. And that largely comes down to how historically British Airways hasn’t specially trained crews working first class, though it’s my understanding that this is starting to change.

I’d say service was better than what I’d expect in American Airlines first class, but that’s about it. I’ve found service to be better in first class on Air France, Lufthansa, and SWISS, and on just about any Asian airline.

Just as an example, when you fly Singapore Airlines first class, they’ll basically refresh the lavatory after every use, fold the toilet paper into a perfect triangle, etc. Meanwhile in British Airways first class, they’ll just put an extra roll of toilet paper on the counter at the beginning of the flight, and hope for the best. 😉

Bottom line

My British Airways A380 first class flight was quite good. The seats are comfortable (though are definitely showing their age), the amenities are nice, the food was good, and the service was friendly.

However, this also isn’t a globally competitive first class product. The A380 is definitely showing its age, and the service level on British Airways isn’t comparable to what you’ll find in the world’s top first class products. But that’s also totally fair.

British Airways’ selling point is that the airline offers a huge network out of one of the world’s most lucrative, slot controlled markets. It’s not like there’s a more comfortable way to fly just about anywhere across the Atlantic in first class. So for British Airways, “good enough” does the trick, and the airline seems to embrace that reality.

What do you make of British Airways’ A380 first class?