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Dave

British Airways further expands its US network

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British Airways is ramping up its US route network this summer, taking its direct US routes to London to 26. 

BA 267: Portland, Oregon International Airport welcomes British Airways and the only direct route between London (Heathrow) and Oregon.

Portland, Oregon has become the newest destination on the British Airways route map, providing the city’s only direct route to the UK.

Neil Chernoff, British Airways’ Director of Networks and Alliances said: 

This summer British Airways will be flying from 26 US cities to London and we’re very excited to be adding Portland to our list of transatlantic destinations. Not only are we the only airline to offer direct flights from Portland to London, but this new route also opens a wide variety of connections for our customers. Through Alaska Airlines, our oneworld partner, British Airways will offer codeshare connections to several destinations operated by Alaska Airlines from Portland.

British Airways has also relaunched its direct route from Pittsburgh to London.  It remains the only airline to offer a direct flight from the Pennsylvanian city to London.

The airline will resume a year-round four-per-week service – Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.

On 6 June, the airline launched a new, daytime flight from Newark Liberty International Airport to London Heathrow – its third daily flight from Newark to London, to support the return of business travel.

The daytime flight will depart at 7.55am from Newark – a convenient option for travellers wishing to spend an extra night in the New York area before departing, or for those who wish to arrive just in time for an evening in London. 

With this additional flight time, British Airways along with its joint business partner, American Airlines will offer ‘the most extensive network from the New York area to London’ with fifteen daily departures this summer, including eleven daily flights from JFK to Heathrow and one daily flight from JFK to Gatwick.

This summer also marks the return of daily direct flights from San Jose, California, to London on 13 June; and the return of A380 aircraft to more North American airports.

Chicago and Vancouver were the latest cities to welcome home the Airbus.

Meanwhile, Dallas Fort Worth is preparing to welcome the A380 for the first time on 1 July. 

The aircraft, which is British Airways’ and the airline industry’s largest, offers a choice of First, Club World, World Traveller Plus and World Traveller cabins and has a total of 469 seats. 

There are twelve A380s in the British Airways fleet. Image shows a British Airways Airbus flying over the cliffs at Dover, taken by Wing Commander Neil Frazer from the backseat of Red 10, one of the Red Arrows jets flown by Squadron Leader Mike Ling.
Dave

American releases revamped amenity kits

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American Airlines is introducing new onboard amenity kits for premium cabin customers in partnership with Shinola and D.S. & Durga.

These thoughtful and creative partners will help keep memories of customers’ travels top of mind, even when customers aren’t flying 35,000 feet in the air.

Clarissa Sebastian, Managing Director of Premium Customer Experience and Onboard Products for American Airlines, said

American often seeks brands that are rooted in creativity, especially those that celebrate travel before, during and after the actual journey. D.S. & Durga and Shinola underscore what we value in our partners at American — the ability to inspire connection with people or places that matter and experiences that enrich us.

Founded in Detroit, Shinola is a luxury design brand with an unwavering commitment to crafting products that are built to last, including world-class watches and premium leather goods. The new amenity kit bag was meticulously designed exclusively for American to get customers from place to place in style, while also offering the functionality to be repurposed post-flight to collect keepsakes or organise essentials for future journeys.

New York-based D.S. & Durga are perfumers known for ‘transportive’ fragrances with rich narratives. The amenity kits include aromas Rose Atlantic and Radio Bombay in lip balms and lotions. Rose Atlantic is inspired by summers on the New England coast with aromas of wild rose and the salty sea. Radio Bombay is described by the perfumers as a journey to the old days of Mumbai as ‘hot copper tubes warm the soft wood releasing the blooms of musk, cream, peach, ambrette, coco and cedar distillates’.

The new amenity kits, which are pouches of personal care items wrapped in sustainable packaging that American provides for premium customers on long-haul international and transcontinental flights, begin rolling out flights operating between the United States and Heathrow. This includes service to Heathrow from Dallas-Fort Worth, Miami, Chicago, Los Angeles, Charlotte, New York City, Philadelphia and Seattle.

The kits will roll out across other long-haul international and transcontinental flights throughout the summer.

Shinola has a reputation for assembling world-class clocks with an affinity for unique design. As an extension of AA’s partnership, Shinola is creating a desk clock featuring a dial made entirely from the original metal of American’s iconic, but now retired, fleet of McDonnell Douglas MD-80 aircraft.

The MD-80s were the long-time backbone of American’s fleet, carrying customers for more than 35 years before it was retired in 2019.

Each dial is unique and bears small markings from the aircraft’s decades of service. Clock dials are hand-cut and re-polished under the watchful eye of Moto Art in California, with final assembly in Shinola’s Detroit factory.

Shinola is creating a limited 1,000 desk clocks, and later this summer, Shinola wall clocks will be featured in select Admirals Club lounges.