Azernews.Az

By Sabina Idayatova

British Airways (BA) officially left the Georgian market on April 1.

British Airways launched the London-Tbilisi-Almaty flights on October 13, 2012, implementing them four times a week.

The company, which returned to Georgia after a hiatus in 2012, explained its decision by commercial reasons, saying the Tbilisi-London and London-Tbilisi flights are unprofitable.

Henceforth, the flights will be carried out only in the direction of Almaty.

A while ago, British Airways decided to stop its flights to the Armenian capital Yerevan from October, 2012, the London office of the company told Radio Liberty's Armenian service in August 2012.

British Airways can trace its origins back to the birth of civil aviation, the pioneering days following World War I. Today the company is the giant airline of the United Kingdom, based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations. British Airways' main base is at London Heathrow Airport in west London, England. British Airways serves nearly 150 destinations, including six domestic. It is one of only ten carriers to fly to all six permanently inhabited continents.

British Airways in Azerbaijani market

Meanwhile, following the successful integration of British Midland International`s (BMI) into British Airways, October 28th marked the launch of the new winter schedule and the official return of British Airways to Azerbaijan. The company refurbished and upgraded all of the A321 aircraft serving the Azerbaijani market.

"Azerbaijan is an extremely important market for British Airways, and the airline's priority is to showcase its exceptional customer service and world-class product offering," Paolo De Renzis, Area Commercial Manager for Middle East & Central Asia at British Airways said on Monday.

According to Renzis, the refurbishment, will provide all Club World (business class) and World Traveller (economy class) customers with the latest on-demand in-flight entertainment technology and new seating for enhanced comfort.

"We are enhancing customer service through technology, and recently issued specially equipped iPads to 2,000 senior cabin crew across the entire British Airways long and shorthaul fleet. This enables the crew to have access to passenger information at the swipe of an iPad, providing real-time insight into our customers' preferences across a whole range of areas, from special meal requests to onward travel plans, enabling us to deliver a truly bespoke service," Renzis said.

Talking about the global plans of the airline, Renzis said that as part of ongoing commitment to the customers British Airways is investing over £5billion in new aircraft, smarter cabins, elegant lounges, and new technologies to make life more comfortable in the air and on the ground.

"We are now two years into this five year investment project and we are already starting to see many changes take effect. In addition to the refurbishment of the A321 aircraft that serve our Baku route, we are also investing £100 million in our new First cabins alone. As innovators in the airline industry we set the benchmarks for flat beds in First and business class cabins, and with the rollout of our new First cabins now over 90% complete, customers from Azerbaijan flying to onward destinations from London Heathrow have already started to experience the new cabin on a more regular basis," Renzis said.

Global perspectives

With regards to the company`s global perspectives Renzis noted that the route network is under reviewing on an ongoing basis, and 2013 also holds many developments for global network.

"Our new flights to Seoul in Korea are already underway, while new flights from London Heathrow to a range of destinations, from Ibiza to Chengdu in China have already been announced. In order to support and continue to grow our global network, we are eagerly anticipating the arrival of nine new long-haul aircraft in 2013," he said.

"Now is an incredibly exciting time for British Airways, with our ongoing investments, new aircraft, and network expansion paving the way for an even stronger global presence," Renzis added.