The community campaign to keep daily British Airways (BA) flights from Heathrow Airport to Bahrain International Airport is gathering momentum as diplomatic discussions at addressing the controversy continue.
More than 1,000 readers have already signed a GDN Media petition just hours after we launched the initiative to urge airline bosses to rethink plans before it’s too late.
Late last week, news circulated online and in the UK national Press, as highlighted in the GDN, that BA would ‘indefinitely axe all flights to Bahrain’ from early next year because of continuing problems with Rolls-Royce engines that power the airline’s Boeing 787 Dreamliner fleet.
The airline has so far declined to confirm or deny the reports. This gives a glimmer of hope that Sean Doyle, chairman and CEO of BA, can be convinced of the route’s importance, popularity and sound business strength for his company, as well as to the UK and the Kingdom of Bahrain.
As reported exclusively in yesterday’s GDN, top-level talks are now taking place between Bahrain officials and BA management and British Ambassador Alastair Long said: “I do empathise with the supply chain challenges facing airlines globally, but am also hopeful BA flights will return.
“The route between the UK and Bahrain is both historic and an important support to the modern bilateral relationship as we look to boost trade, tourism and the multiple connections between our kingdoms still further.”
The furore over the possibility that direct flights by the UK’s national flag carrier between Heathrow and the new terminal at Muharraq after almost a century of aviation partnership could not have come at a worse time for the new British government desperately ‘driving forward trade talks to turbocharge economic growth’.
Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds has announced the UK government’s intention to deliver a number of trade talks, starting with the Gulf Co-operation Council.
The new Labour administration says it is putting economic growth ‘at the heart of everything it does to improve the livelihoods of hardworking British people’. “The UK’s trade programme aims to deliver deals that will benefit the UK economy and boost trade with some of the most dynamic economies in the world,” said Mr Reynolds.
“For example, a trade agreement with the Gulf Co-operation Council would be a substantial economic opportunity, with at least £19 billion total already invested in each other’s economies as of 2021.
“An agreement with the GCC could potentially boost this further, ensuring British companies can make the most of this booming market and British customers get even more choice.”
The British embassy in Bahrain was quick to highlight the move on its social media.
The BA situation is complicated by the fact that although the airline carries the national flag and was state-owned from its inception, it was privatised in 1987.
As a private entity, it is now part of a collection of airlines and non-airline businesses, all operating under parent company International Airlines Group (IAG), a British-Spanish multinational airline holding company with its registered office in Madrid, Spain, and its corporate headquarters in London.
Doha-based Qatar Airways holds a 25 per cent stake in IAG, which also owns Iberia, as well as Aer Lingus, Vueling and Level.
It has just posted an operating profit of 2 billion euros ($2.15bn) for the three months to September 30, 15pc higher than the same period last year. Revenue rose 7.9pc to 9.32bn euros.
Mr Doyle said in a LinkedIn post that the carrier had ‘faced a challenging operating environment this summer, driven by air traffic control restrictions, adverse weather and engine supply delays’ and thanked customers for their understanding when delays have occurred.
“We’re already working hard with our industry and government partners to improve resilience across the sector ahead of next summer,” he said.
Aviation insiders suggest the BA route to Bahrain was ‘highly profitable’ but unreliability issues meant that compensation paid to disgruntled passengers had ‘soared sky high’ in recent months ‘killing the business’.
The GDN reported the case of one flight being delayed 24 hours because of technical issues.
Passengers trying to book BA flights to Bahrain for next April’s Formula One extravaganza have also been informed there would be no direct flights at that time and have been offered a link to Qatar Airways.
A ‘Gold for Life’ member of the BA Executive Club in Bahrain said: “They are allegedly citing ‘not commercially viable’ but I have never yet been on an empty BA flight to London in the last 44 years!
“Of course, Bahrain’s own national carrier Gulf Air will win but they don’t do ongoing connections like BA to certain destinations so you have to collect your luggage in London and then change terminals.
“Let’s hope diplomatic channels help,” she added.
managingeditor@gdnmedia.bh
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