BA’S chaos must have cost it more than installing fail-safe systems

SIR – It is appalling that such a large company as British Airways, which relies on its computer system for everything, does not have a resilient network and infrastructure.

In the banking industry, it is a basic requirement to have a solid infrastructure, with multiple data centres and power backed up by batteries and generators.

The costs associated with this failure must surely by now have easily outweighed the cost-savings made by not installing a fit infrastructure.

The loss of goodwill will be immense.

Woolstone, Buckinghamshire

SIR – The attitude of BA to its customers was made clear to me last year. I booked a BA flight to Barcelona and reserved seats online. On arrival at the check-in, we were told the flight was now with Vueling – a subsidiary of the BA group – and our seats were at the back of the aircraft.

On return, I asked BA to explain and hopefully apologise. They replied that as we flew with Vueling it was for them to respond. We duly asked Vueling, only to be told that the booking was made through BA, so it was for BA to respond.

BA has changed. It seems to pay little attention to customer service. The response to the recent computer failure continues the trend.

It is noted that BA’S chief executive, Alex Cruz, formerly ran Vueling.

London W1

SIR – I had always been a fan of BA. How can a large company like this make such a mess of public relations when things go wrong?

I shall be selling my shares today.

Amersham, Buckinghamshire

SIR – Shame on those hotel companies who may have cashed in on the plight of stranded air passengers in London, and charged them exorbitant prices for a room for the night. Such actions grate painfully when compared with the hoteliers, cabbies and citizens of Manchester who provided free accommodation, transport and food to the victims of last Monday’s atrocity.

Conon Bridge, Ross-shire

SIR – What a nice holiday break for world-class hackers. They can ignore BA and leave it to them to hack themselves to death.

Chorleywood, Hertfordshire

SIR – Having first-hand experience of the British Airways chaos on Saturday, I suppose I should be grateful that I was in Portugal and not in London.

As a victim of their abysmal management inadequacies, I propose the company’s motto be changed from the totally inappropriate “To fly. To serve” to the much more appropriate: “Not a care in the world for anyone, most especially you.”

Sunninghill, Berkshire