Heathrow's plans to take the hassle out of air travel got off to a bumpy start, reports Ciarán Hancock
IT PROMISED TO BE a new departure for air travellers fed up with the hassle of getting through Heathrow to catch their flights. In the end, Heathrow's Terminal 5, which opened on Thurdsay, turned out to be just like its four predecessors: overcrowded and chaotic.
The €5.5 billion building, which is being used solely by British Airways, was reduced to a shambles on its opening day by the failure of its high-tech baggage-handling system.
Thirty four flights were cancelled, luggage check-in was suspended and many aircraft took off with only those passengers who had managed to carry their bags on board. By yesterday lunchtime BA had cancelled another 76 flights. It blamed the problems on staff not being familiar with the new systems.
The episode was a major embarrassement for both BA and BAA, the Spanish-owned company that runs Heathrow. They had spent five years boasting that T5 would "put the customers in control of their travel" and "give customers back their time to spend as they choose".
They will be hoping that the chaos of the past few days will prove to be nothing more than teething problems and that T5 will soon be running like clockwork.
Heathrow's four old terminals handled 68 million passengers a year - about three times the number that travel through Dublin every year - and they were bursting at the seams.
T5, which was 15 years on the drawing board, has been designed to handle more than 30 million passengers a year, including the thousands of Irish passengers who use BA to reach long-haul destinations. The five- storey terminal, which is four times the size of T4, is bright and airy, and checking in was meant to be simple: no matter which door you step through to enter T5, you'll find a check-in kiosk and bag-drop desk right in front of you.
BA estimates that about 80 per cent of its passengers will check in online, before arriving at Heathrow, with the result that they will just have to drop their bags at one of the 96 desks along the concourse. Those who haven't checked in before arriving will have 96 interactive kiosks to choose from before dropping their bag and heading for security.
BA had estimated that it would take passengers just 10 minutes to pass through security from the moment they set foot in T5. It might now want to revise that estimate.
All passengers must pass through the security point at least 35 minutes before their flights. BAA has said there will be no exceptions: its IT system will inform the departure gate if you've made the cut or not.
T5 has also been built without a public-address system. So there will be no final boarding calls for late passengers and no updates if your flight is delayed or your departure gate changed.
In a briefing with Irish journalists, Willie Walsh, BA's chief executive, said T5 is crucial for the airline's development. "This will allow us to significantly improve our services to customers," the Irishman said.
Thousands of weary passengers will be crossing their fingers that he's right.
How Terminal 5 is meant to work Irish chain lands in T5
Most of the Irish passengers using T5 will be catching a connecting flight at the airport rather than turning up at its front door. If you're travelling with Aer Lingus or BMI (which also flies from Dublin and Cork to Heathrow), you'll arrive at Terminal 1. You'll then have to make your way to T5.
Allow two hours' transfer time to reach T5. If you are flying with Aer Lingus, which has a code-share arrangement with BA, your bags should be checked straight through to your final destination.
Not all of BA's flights from Heathrow have moved to T5 yet, so double-check that your ultimate destination is already being served from T5.
When you land at T1, follow the signs for Flight Connections. From there, follow the signs for T5. Once you're in the new terminal, make your way to Zone A if you are connecting with a UK domestic flight or to Zone B if you are linking up with an international flight.
Be warned: you need to pass through the Flight Connections gate 35 minutes before your aircraft departs to be accepted for your flight.
From Flight Connections, follow the signs for T5, where you will go through a security check - fast-track is available for eligible customers. You must arrive at your gate 20 minutes before departure.
If you plan to spend some time in London, T5 is served by the Heathrow Express from Paddington and the Piccadilly line on the Underground.
BA is encouraging passengers to check in online. Regardless of how you check in, you must still pass through security no more than 35 minutes before your flight.
First-class customers will have their own customer-service desks at the southern end of the terminal. They can also use fast-track facilities through security.
Business and first-class customers have six lounges in an area known as Galleries. The first-class lounge is all Italian marble, soft furnishings and crystal chandeliers. It also includes a small boardroom fitted with seats from Concorde - all tastefully refurbished, of course. There's even an indoor balcony where you can sink into a large sofa, drink in hand, and do a bit of plane spotting, or just watch those in cattle class mooch about in the terminal building below.
First-class passengers can also treat themselves to some spa treatments, pay a visit to the cinema or just catch up on some work.
Irish chain lands in T5
HUGHES & HUGHES, the Dublin-based bookseller, is the only Irish retailer among the 112 shops and restaurants operating in Terminal 5's 18,500sq m (200,000sq ft) retail area.
Its two stores at Terminal 5 will line up alongside Gordon Ramsay's first airport restaurant and the luxury retail brands Harrods, Tiffany and Prada.
Hughes & Hughes, whose T5 shops will employ 60 people, is well known to regular users of Dublin, Cork, Shannon and London City airports.
Derek Hughes says he is hoping that T5 will be a good calling card as the retailer, which has 21 shops, pitches for contracts with other airports around Europe. "Terminal 5 is the launch pad we've been looking for," Hughes says. "It's a great coup for us, and we see opportunities at UK and other international airports."
Hughes expects his newest outlets to yield €70 million in sales over the five years of the contract. The retailer spent about €1.5 million kitting them out for the launch.
He isn't unduly concerned about the economic slowdown and how it might impact on customers' buying habits. "People don't stop reading when the economy slows," he said. "If anything, it's a cost-effective way of spending your leisure time."