Terminal 5 at Heathrow -- merged discussion

[Globaliser]

To answer the questions, there is no other flight from Toronto to London earlier on the 28th, so if I wanted an earlier flight, it has to be the same flight the day before. Which would get me into London the morning of the 28th and I'd have a day in London. I could keep the second flight the same - the morning of the 29th, arriving in Amsterdam at 10am I believe it was. That would give me a day in London - which would be kind of cool, but I'd also be nervous, travelling alone... Of course, it would also mean I'd have to find a place to stay. I know this is probably what everyone is going to say I should do! :)

 

Going between terminals does NOT require going through customs or security again - as long as I don't leave the airport.

...

So, now it comes down to either cutting it really close - arriving in London at 6:45 and leaving at 8:40 (BA told me that they actually require 2 hours between connecting flights if you need to switch terminals, but she said they'd do it anyway for 5 minutes). OR going a full day early and spending a day in London.

...

I wonder if they would change the entire sequence of flights to a day earlier and I'd have that day in Amsterdam instead...hmmm...

A few things:

 

Subject to availability, there should be two flights on the previous day. If you're going to go a day earlier, you may find it less pressured to go on the later flight, particularly if you might otherwise have a long connection. Just another possible option.

 

Spending a day in London or Amsterdam would be well worthwhile, not only for having the day there but also for starting to get over your jetlag; you'll enjoy your cruise more. Plus you'll remove a lot of the travel stress from having tight connections. Sometimes it's not possible for people, but if it is possible for you, you may get even more out of this than you think.

 

Unfortunately, you've been given duff information about security. As you're arriving from outside the UK, you will have to re-clear security whether you're connecting within the same terminal or changing terminals. But if you connect to T5, you will clear security at T5, and it seems that things are going well in that department there.

[librarycin]

This should be my last post regarding my flights. I tried talking to Celebrity again this morning to find out if we could possibly switch me to a different airline, but the woman I talked to this morning said she couldn't give out any info or even answer any questions - it had to go through my TA, unless I had my TA call in to give authorization for them to give me info. I asked my TA to do that for me. (She was the one who originally suggested I talk directly to BA and Celebrity to explain and find out my options anyway!)

 

I got a message a couple hours later that she had talked to them, and they offered a completely different airline and flight itinerary for me. I had to get back to her asap and she would get back to them if I was o.k. with it. So, I went with it.

 

It's not too different from my first flight itinerary, but I go through Frankfurt instead of London, and it takes just a little bit longer. I have 2 hours between the 2 flights in Frankfurt - I'm assuming that will be plenty, barring a late first flight. I am also happy to be avoiding London and Heathrow, in particular! I arrive in Amsterdam and 10:10am. Which is only 10 minutes later than my initial flight, and it gives me a bit of leeway if my second flight is a bit late. I am o.k. with this.

 

A day in London would have been nice - I may have had a chance to do a bit of sightseeing there OR I would have had a chance to sleep off a bit of jet lag, BUT it would have cost a lot more money!

 

Sorry for all my panicking and thank you all for your advice! :o I will now leave your thread so you can resume discussing Heathrow's Terminal 5...

Cindy

[TLCOhio]

In the May 2008 edition of Travel + Leisure that just came out, British Airways has a large color ad with the headline: "FEEL CALM AGAIN". There is a large picture of the new Terminal 5 made to look as if it is a large fish aquarium on the inside with light blue color water calming all of the large fish swimming around on the inside. The rest of the copy says: "The world's a busy, stressful place. We can't change that. But we can change the way you feel when you travel. Immerse yourself in serenity as you flow effortlessly through your journey. Welcome to London Heathrow Terminal 5. Your new experience. Our new home." I am sure the copy was written and the ad designed way before BA's problems in late March. I would assume this ad theme will be pulled and significantly adjusted, quickly!

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

[Globaliser]

It's not too different from my first flight itinerary, but I go through Frankfurt instead of London, and it takes just a little bit longer. I have 2 hours between the 2 flights in Frankfurt - I'm assuming that will be plenty, barring a late first flight. I am also happy to be avoiding London and Heathrow, in particular! I arrive in Amsterdam and 10:10am. Which is only 10 minutes later than my initial flight, and it gives me a bit of leeway if my second flight is a bit late. I am o.k. with this.

This will certainly take much of the stress out of connecting. There should be a reasonable number of backup flights from Frankfurt to Amsterdam too: the next Lufthansa is at 1050, arriving at 1200; and the one after that is at 1250, arriving at 1400. So you'd have to be very unlucky to be under real pressure. Hope it goes well!

[Globaliser]

I would assume this ad theme will be pulled and significantly adjusted, quickly!

Actually, current reports from travellers suggest that everything that is at T5 is generally working well. But the airline is just keen not to repeat the problems by stressing the system again until it is ready.

 

It now looks like I will, after all, get my first T5 experience on Sunday when I come back from a day trip. :)

[librarycin]

This will certainly take much of the stress out of connecting. There should be a reasonable number of backup flights from Frankfurt to Amsterdam too: the next Lufthansa is at 1050, arriving at 1200; and the one after that is at 1250, arriving at 1400. So you'd have to be very unlucky to be under real pressure. Hope it goes well!

 

Thank you. I definitely feel better about this one - and even if I have to take the 1050 flight, arriving at noon should be good, too.

 

Good luck with your trip through T5 on Sunday! You'll have to let everyone here know how it goes!

[Globaliser]

It all went fine yesterday evening. The aircraft for our flight to Heathrow left Heathrow on time and got to where we were 10 minutes early, so all was set for an on-time departure. We got a slot restriction (usual for Sunday afternoons!), so that we were held at the gate for about 10 minutes and then again at the end of the runway, so that we actually took off about 35 minutes after scheduled departure time. But we only had to hold in London for about 6 or 7 minutes, so we landed about 5 minutes after our scheduled arrival time and were on stand just under 10 minutes later. Not quite sure if that will count as a "delay" in the statistics, but it's about normal for a Sunday evening.

 

So all in all, a good day out.

 

The terminal seemed very quiet and calm - including at check-in, where we went to have a look before setting off for home. Funnily enough, it had been much, much busier when I was there during the trials. So the ambience ought to be good even when the terminal is working at full capacity. And as far as I could tell, the baggage system seemed to be working OK.

[heathermk57]

I can second these comments. We travelled via terminal 5 last weekend and all went well. The only slight problem was on returning when we had to circle Heathrow for some time before we could land, but this could happen at any busy airport. No problems with luggage.

[TLCOhio]

I can second these comments. We travelled via terminal 5 last weekend and all went well. The only slight problem was on returning when we had to circle Heathrow for some time before we could land, but this could happen at any busy airport. No problems with luggage.

 

THANKS for the update on your positive experiences with Terminal 5, plus the success that Globaliser had. We're hopeful that things will be fine for us this summer in connection with our cruise to the Baltics. Terry in Ohio

[heathermk57]

THANKS for the update on your positive experiences with Terminal 5, plus the success that Globaliser had. We're hopeful that things will be fine for us this summer in connection with our cruise to the Baltics. Terry in Ohio

 

Glad to report something positive from the UK! Hope you have a great time - our very first cruise was Scandinavia & Russia and it was awesome! The Baltic countries are all very interesting and the weather can be much warmer than you might expect. We sweltered in St Petersburg.:)

[TLCOhio]

Getting ready for our flight to Heathrow in less than a week. Is no news there good news? I assume things this summer are running fairly "normal" there, including at Terminal 5. In general, I've heard that lost luggage at all airport and with most airlines continues to be a little bit of a "dice roll". Probably you'll be OK, but pack lighter and take as much as carry-on as possible in the event there is a problem or bag delay. Recent reactions and/or first-hand experiences?

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

[debsjc]

I'm working there right now and everything is going very well, except we have a rain storm coming in!

 

Things have improved considerably with terminal 5 now, there seems to be no more lost baggage in 5 than in the other terminals.

 

If you are transferring through Heathrow and onto another flight you may have a short wait for the transit security check, as this is Heathrows busiest time of year for transfer traffic.

[TLCOhio]

I'm working there right now and everything is going very well, except we have a rain storm coming in! Things have improved considerably with terminal 5 now, there seems to be no more lost baggage in 5 than in the other terminals. If you are transferring through Heathrow and onto another flight you may have a short wait for the transit security check, as this is Heathrows busiest time of year for transfer traffic.

 

THANKS for the on-location, quick, good news reporting! What, you can't make the weather perfect? The weather is suppose to be better by later next week in London and southern England. We are flying into Heathrow, staying five night in Kent area before boarding our cruise July 24. That should make it easier. Will come back from Stockholm on BA into Terminal 5, changing to American out from Terminal 3. Have three hours for that transfer. Any other good tips or ideas? Appreciate the help. Terry in Ohio

[debsjc]

I just saw a weather forecast and it said 'cool and unsettled' for the start of next week, but hopefully it will get better by next weekend for you. We have had so much rain, we should be due for some sun soon!

 

When you transfer back through Heathorw just make sure you follow the signs for 'Flight Connections' (not arrivals) then you will remian 'airside' and not have to clear immigration or customs. You will just take the airside transfer bus to T3, and pass through a security check there.

BA in Stockholm may issue both boarding passes for you, if not stop by the AA transfer desk in T3 to pick up your onwards boarding pass. With 3 hours I would expect the baggage to be fine, unless there is a system failure which is rare now.

[TLCOhio]

I just saw a weather forecast and it said 'cool and unsettled' for the start of next week, but hopefully it will get better by next weekend for you. We have had so much rain, we should be due for some sun soon! When you transfer back through Heathorw just make sure you follow the signs for 'Flight Connections' (not arrivals) then you will remian 'airside' and not have to clear immigration or customs. You will just take the airside transfer bus to T3, and pass through a security check there.

 

THANKS! Good info. We'll hope for the best on both the weather and baggage. Terry in Ohio

[Globaliser]

Getting ready for our flight to Heathrow in less than a week. Is no news there good news? I assume things this summer are running fairly "normal" there, including at Terminal 5. In general, I've heard that lost luggage at all airport and with most airlines continues to be a little bit of a "dice roll". Probably you'll be OK, but pack lighter and take as much as carry-on as possible in the event there is a problem or bag delay. Recent reactions and/or first-hand experiences?

On my last trip through T5 (two weekends ago), I had difficulty finding a check-in queue when I needed to drop my bags. That is to say, there were far too many check-in agents sitting at desks waiting for passengers, and no queues at any desks.

 

Coming back, I had to wait until about 20 minutes after the aircraft stopped at my gate before my bag was delivered to the carousel. What a good thing that almost 10 of those minutes were spent walking to the carousel from the aircraft.

 

Seriously, though, T5 is generally working well, and is loved by most passengers coming through it.

[whogo]

Googling Heathrow news turned up: "Heathrow Terminal 5 still losing 1,000 bags a day" http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/2279195/Heathrow-Terminal-5-still-losing-1,000-bags-a-day.html

 

and "Passengers face one in 12 risk of missing luggage" http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/jul/10/britishairwaysbusiness.heathrow

 

If I follow this correctly, transfer luggage has an 8% missing rate when T5 is involved and 6.5% to 7% missing rate for the rest of the airport. Late arriving flights appear to be a factor.

 

The USDOT reported mishandled luggage of less than 1% for all reporting US airlines for May 2008. http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov/reports/2008/July/200807atcr.pdf

 

The USDOT does not measure mishandling the same way that the British trade union does.

[TLCOhio]

T5 is generally working well, and is loved by most passengers coming through it.

 

THANKS for the added info! On August 5, we do look forward to seeing first-hand what eight billion dollars or so buys and gets these days as we pass through Terminal 5 coming from Stockholm on our way back to the USA. Your updates and the comments from others have been very interesting and helpful. Terry in Ohio

[Globaliser]

"Passengers face one in 12 risk of missing luggage" http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/jul/10/britishairwaysbusiness.heathrow

 

If I follow this correctly, transfer luggage has an 8% missing rate when T5 is involved ...

I don't believe this is correct. If you read this article, it contains an important piece of information that provides some insight into why the union has latched onto this number to generate headlines:-

Unite also blamed inadequate links between the building and BA's other terminals at Heathrow, meaning that bags arriving at Terminal 4 have to make a laborious journey to T5.

 

"There are lots of transfer bags landing in T4 and they have to be manually transferred to T5 because there is no mechanical system for loading the bags," said Vaid, who witnessed the T5 chaos at first hand as one of the BA baggage handlers in the building. BAA, Heathrow's owner, said a baggage link between T4 and T5 was under construction.

This has to be set into the context of the fact that there were supposed to only a tiny handful of BA flights still at T4 now, but there are many more still there because the transfer of flights has been delayed. It looks like this is where the major baggage problem is.

 

But I think that this means that it is not the case that "transfer luggage has an 8% missing rate when T5 is involved". AFAIK, T5-T5 baggage transfer is doing well - although as always subject to the usual difficulties when inbound flights are late, which they always will frequently be at Heathrow.

 

To set TLCOhio's mind more at rest, there is a T3-T5 baggage link, which was put in place because the all non-T5 BA flights and all oneworld partners will be in T3 in about six months from now. It is interesting that the articles do not mention any problems with that link.

[whogo]

Good points, Globaliser. The Guardian article does not reconcile the 1 in 12 (8%) missing claim with BA's figure of 8 per 1000 (0.8%). The OP won't be transferring luggage anyway, with Dover as an embarkation point.

[TLCOhio]

Good points, Globaliser. The Guardian article does not reconcile the 1 in 12 (8%) missing claim with BA's figure of 8 per 1000 (0.8%). The OP won't be transferring luggage anyway, with Dover as an embarkation point.

 

Correct! Landing on July 19, we'll pick up our bags at Terminal 3 where our American flight from Chicago arrives. Then, we get a car, go to Royal Tunbridge Kent for five days before boarding our cruise at Dover on July 24. No baggage to be transfered as we are arriving at Heathrow. On Aug. 5, we'll arrive on BA at Terminal 5 at 9 am and depart from Terminal 3 on American to Chicago at 12:15 pm. Assuming all of these facts, hopefully our odds are better for things being fairly smooth coming and going through Heathrow.

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

[Globaliser]

The Guardian article does not reconcile the 1 in 12 (8%) missing claim with BA's figure of 8 per 1000 (0.8%).

Which is just typical of media reporting about the industry. The aim of the way the article is written is to:-

1. Try to bury the 8 per 1000 figure in a morass of words so that nobody notices it.
2. Highlight the union's figure in such a way that if anyone does notice the difference, they will immediately jump to the conclusion that the airline is lying - don't worry if there's a perfectly good explanation for the difference.
3. And definitely, definitely write the article in a way that makes everyone think that the "1 in 12" figure is for all passengers at Heathrow.

Never mind the truth; if it bleeds, it leads.

[handfordr]

As Globaliser alludes to, there is a lot of vested interests with some angle on Heathrow to pursue their agenda. The media seems to be very poor and taken in nearly every time, often resulting in sensational headlines and a misinformed public.

 

At the moment Terminal 1 and 5 in my view are functioning as good as any terminal, Terminal 4 and 3 being the short straws at Heathrow in terms of comfort and room.

[TLCOhio]

Here are some highlights from Reuters that was posted today on the new advertising campaign that British Airways will be using to try to repair the reputation of Terminal 5 after it opened to chaotic scenes of lost baggage and cancelled flights in March.

 

The story today noted: "We will start an ad campaign based on the truth of T5," Chief Executive Willie Walsh told shareholders at the group's AGM on Tuesday. "We will get the message across that T5 is working and it's working well." Walsh said the performance of the terminal had "very significantly improved", and he was receiving letters and emails on a daily basis praising the 4.3 billion pound facility. A union leader told a parliamentary committee last week an average of 932 bags a day were still not connecting with passengers transferring at Terminal Five.

 

Look forward to seeing first-hand what $8 plus BILLION in construction costs buys these day.

THANKS! Terry in Ohio

[Globaliser]

Looking forward to reading about your impressions!