SLIM PICKINGS

I live in Arizona and have just returned from a trip to France on British Airways. I flew Phoenix to Heathrow in First class, which was quite good. Unable to get First on the return leg, I flew business class and found it the worst business class of any airline I have flown.

Which genius ever thought that sitting backwards at a window seat was a good idea, and with the adjacent seat facing you? (Which I wouldn’t have minded if Jennifer Aniston was opposite, but not some other stranger.) There is a screen you can raise but the window seat then becomes more confined and claustrophobic.

The seating on a B747-400 is in a very tight eightacross configuration and the cabin is placed amidships with premium economy in front of it and First in the nose section, so that when you land both First and business class have to wait until premium economy has disembarked.

The business class seat is narrow but, worst of all, other than a small foot locker for your shoes, there is no storage for an iPad, phone, clothing, glasses, etc. In fact, the magazine storage compartment is jammed full with just the BA in-flight magazine and onboard purchase magazine.

To add insult to injury, Club Europe has identical seats to economy with an insert leaving the middle seat free, but the seats are packed so close it may as well be economy.

On a positive note, the cabin crew are always wonderful. Peter I Volny, Arizona