Bmi is dropping business class on its domestic and Ireland routes from Heathrow from 27 January. From that date, the airline will only offer a single economy cabin on routes from the airport.
At the same time, however, the airline will launch Flexible Economy fares that will give passengers access to guaranteed seating at the front of the aircraft, the use of business lounges at both ends of the route and complimentary food and drink.
Bmi says that changes in company travel policies are responsible for the change.
Dominic Paul, managing director bmi, said: “Customers travelling on our higher fares value business lounges, a seat at the front of the aircraft and complimentary food and drink but most no longer have business class travel policies for short flight travel. We have created a new service which delivers these important benefits, but on an all Economy aircraft, so they also benefit from a lower level of APD.”
Passengers in economy who are Gold and Silver members of the airline’s Diamond Club freqeunt flyer programme will no longer qualify for free food and drink. However, all members of the club will earn double destinations miles on all UK flights to and from London Heathrow and flights between London Heathrow and both Dublin and Amsterdam from 27 January until 31 March 2010.
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The airline says that anyone booked onto a business class flight after that date will be switched onto a Flexible Economy fare and be entitled to a refund of any additional taxes paid – the change in designation means that passengers will pay a lower rate of Air Passenger Duty.
The airilne only opened a new lounge at Heathrow’s terminal 1 in June last year.
The carrier has also announced plans to launch new services from 28 March 2010 from Heathrow to Vienna. The route will bind Bmi more tightly into parent company Lufthansa’s network since it is the home base of the German airline’s other recent acquisition Austrian Airlines. Austrian already operates two services a day on the route but the new Bmi flights will increase frequency on the route by the group’s airlines to five a day.