Has anyone flown with BA recently?

[KT12]

We are flying BA to Cape Town in December with DD who will be 13 months old. I am a bit confused. The website sates that they don't provide meals for children under 2 and they won't heat up unsealed food - however security make you unseal jars and taste it!

So I have the following questions:

1. With the current tight security are flight attendants flexible with heating jars that have been openned?
2. What do the 2+ kiddies meals include - I think DD will probably be fine with these and assume they contain minimum salt and sugar??
3. Do they provide Cows milk? Our return journey is a day flight. I'm still breast feeding a bit and will probably keep going for the trip as it will make things a bit easier.

I'd be very grateful to any comments. Thanks

ou really need to all their customer services as I think your questions are really quite specific, I haven't travelled long haul with them with a baby.
cape town sounds fab!

KT12

Flew with BA in August. I have never seen an adult at security being asked to taste baby food.

I would not ask the crew to heat up any baby food jar; they could very well overheat it. If your DD can eat the jarfood cold I'd stick to this instead.

Childrens meals are not great - again
I'd take your own food along with you. I seem to recall that DS's meal was beans, sausage and mash. It looked - and smelt awful.

Think crew do carry cow's milk on flights (well from the UK anyway) but they don't carry an awful lot of it onboard.

Would speak with BA customer services in any event.

Thanks both - I will call customer services...had called them to request a sky cot but forgot to ask about food.

Attila.. we flew to Portugal in October and I was made to unseal a jar and taste it when going through security - was very surprised as I had some home made lentil soup with me too - which I was not made to taste - I took the jar as a back-up. It was a 12 month+ one so quite solid food..

don't get too excited about the sky cot, at best it will be somewhre to put your little one when they are hard and fast asleep. DS1 was 5 months when he had one, and they were quite small and flimsy, although this was Virgin, so they could differ.
i got asked if I'd open and taste some yoghurt - yes, of course I'll remove the foil, taste it and put it back in my bag to cack up everything in it!

We flew a few years ago with BA with dd2 who was 22months therefore couldn't have a meal but was eating more or less same as us

• rang before we left to ask if we could pay for an extra meal and was told no we couldn't but to ask if there was a spare one on board

• on the way out there wasn't any spare so she ate mine (great when you're diabetic and really could have done with it yourself)

• on the way back was told I should have rung customer services and paid for one!!!! (but did at least get one!)

Feck me yes and it was a bloody nightmare. They don't really do airport check in now, you are supposed to go on line on their website to book your seat numbers and print off boarding passes (with seat numbers allocated) in advance of the day of travel...It seems BA think they are the bloody multiplex

Otherwise, if you don't do this you could arrive at the airport in the traditional manner to check in, only to find that 98% of seats have been allocated and your family of 3 is located in 2 or 3 disparate locations and not sat with each other.

Sort this out before you worry about food!

From what I remember, the child meals weren't especially great and the sky cots were tiny! I would prob try and take your own food if you can.

www.britishairways.com/travel/managebooking/public/en_gb?eId=104509

Make sure you sort this out first (although I think you can only do it 24 hrs before)

Thanks handlemecarefully....had already done so at time of booking. We have been allocated the bulkhead seats. Flying business class as get concessions so will have some extra space.

Escape - have done two longhaul flights on different airlines before DD was on solids - and the skycots were great. She is quite tiny and the flight out there is a night flight. Coming back is a day flight and I know that will be quite an experience.

Thanks for suggestion that I should take my own food - be interested to know what you suggest. I suppose fruit, sandwiches anything else?

Not BA, but a comment on kid's meals. We mainly fly virgin, but I think the meals are pretty much the same. Don't expect low sugar and salt, if anything it was higher. Total junk food. Shockingly bad with multiple bars of chocoltae and sugar laden food. Its like they are trying to get the kids hyped up on sugar so they will live up to the stereotype of badly behaved kids on airplanes! You would be better off with an adult meal.

KT12

Are you in Premium Economy?. Premium economy have bulkhead seats (their PE class is only about 4 rows or so) and is a nice section all told of the aircraft to sit in. These pax also have their own toilet facility.

Would agree with Ilana re kids meals on planes - they've all been awful to date. I'd certainly take your own foodstuffs like you've suggested.

Would certainly suggest that you check in online to print off your boarding passes 24 hours before departure. BA doesn't have a separate check in for PE passengers.

Have a safe journey to Capetown.

Thanks Attila... No we are in business class - so flat beds - yay!! Yes we will check in online and have been told not to alter seats as the bulkhead have already been allocated.

Think I'll just breastfeed more than usual on plane and take dry food plus a jar or two for back-up and hope I won't be made to taste again.

Thanks for all advice - very appreciated - would still like some more suggestions of what food to take along for the journey.

Hopefully you will have the new Club World seats - they're even better than the previous ones (the previous ones are still pretty good!). They have a nice "raid the larder" area as well.

Would suggest that you make use the Club World lounge area. If you're checking in at Heathrow the Club World check in area is well appointed and has its own security checkpoint. Thus once through there you are out into the departure lounge. Saves bags of time!.

Enjoy!!.

I'd take some breadsticks, rice cakes, several bananas, puree pots and maybe some other easily mashable fruit (pear?) that you could mash with a plastic fork. My DD used to prefer jars cold rather than hot which was ideal if we were travelling anywhere.

The children's food is pretty 'plastic' imo. It seems to be pasta, pasta or pasta. Also chocolate bars etc.

But if you're using the lounge, carry some plastic food bags with you and take some food from there, sandwiches, fruit etc. In fact, dd thinks she's even seen baby jars in there, though you'd better not bank on that!

Thanks all for good tips!! Attila - we are flying from terminal 4 - do you know if they have the same Club World check in as Terminal 1? DH seems to think not unless it has changed recently?? Thanks

They keep changing it there all the time.

The Club World Check in area at T4 is I seem to recall is indicated from the outside of T4 (I think you go to Zone D but don't quite me on it - check with BA in advance and they'll tell you which zone at T4 to head for). Am more familiar with CW at T3 (I know I sounds like a snob but I've used my airmiles to upgrade!). Think the CW lounge at T4 is quite a long way off from the main hussle of the terminal itself - handy to use if your departure gate is in that direction.

Have a safe flight to Capetown.