Worse than Aeroflot! BA could lose its 4-star rating

BRITISH Airways is expected to be stripped of its coveted four-star quality rating after being accused of providing a worse service than Aeroflot.

In a new humiliation, the boss of research firm Skytrax said Britain’s flagship carrier now compares unfavourably with the state-backed Russian airline, once known for having an appalling safety record, inedible food and rude staff.

Skytrax said it is likely to cut BA’s rating to three stars out of five, bringing it in line with budget airline Ryanair, Uzbekistan Airways, Ethiopian Airlines, and Myanmar Airways. The move comes hard on the heels of last week’s IT shutdown which grounded flights and resulted in passengers being stranded across the world.

BA has been widely accused of becoming more like a budget airline under chief executive Alex Cruz, despite typically charging significantly higher fares.

It sparked a passenger backlash by ditching free snacks and drinks on shorthaul services, planning to cut leg room on some flights and slashing perks for business class. There have also been complaints of BA regularly running out of food on board. Edward Plaisted, chief executive of Skytrax, told The Sunday Times: ‘In many cases they (BA) don’t meet a four-star standard’. He said Aeroflot – which is 51 per cent owned by the Russian government – has better in-flight catering and better service.

He described Aeroflot as a ‘shining example of an airline that’s transformed themselves’ – compared with BA, which ‘ has not invested in the same way’.

BA, which once used the slogan ‘the world’s favourite airline’, has had four stars since the ratings began 18 years ago. A downgrade to three would see it fall fur- ther behind five-star rivals including Etihad and Singapore Airlines.

BA, which faces a four-day strike over pay by cabin crew from June 16, said it was close to announcing improved service and food for Club World passengers as part of a £ 400million investment. Critics have claimed that Mr Cruz’s ruthless cost- cutting was partly to blame for last week’s IT disaster.

Unions blamed the fiasco on a decision to cut hundreds of IT jobs and outsource roles to India, although BA insisted the shutdown was caused by a power supply problem.

Spaniard Mr Cruz, 50, has resisted calls to resign after being accused of spearheading a slow and chaotic response to the crisis.

Although Willie Walsh, boss of BA’s parent group IAG, has publicly praised Mr Cruz, there are rumours he could be replaced.

Yesterday it emerged that BA is in talks with Capita over the possibility of outsourcing its call centres in Newcastle and Manchester, which employ around 1,400 staff. BA said no decision has been made.