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industry view
No room for complacency,
even if you have direct flights
By Sue Petrie, British Airways Commercial Manager for Southern Africa
A TRAVEL colleague told me of a
lesson he learnt many years ago
when he had booked a trip to
London. It is that sometimes
what may seem the best value
can be a false economy.
Direct services to the United
Kingdom from South Africa,
which remains one of our most
popular overseas destinations,
usually cost a bit more than those
that operate via a hub in Africa, the Mid-
dle East or Europe.
That is because there is more demand for direct services. It
is quicker, easier and more convenient to fly directly from here
to London than it is to break your journey, disembark from one
aircraft and catch another.
The price differential on the route is effectively compensation
for this inconvenience.
At face value this makes the indirect route a practical option
for people who place a premium on price and less so for those
who value time and convenience.
None of this is new or particularly insightful, but it does
sometimes give rise to assumptions that are worth exploring.
One of these is that leisure travellers will always gravitate to
the best value and business and corporate customers will prefer
the direct services.
That is simply not true. The direct carriers on the SA – UK
route fight as hard for both markets as their competitors.
It is why we have just introduced upgraded in-flight features
on the South African routes. Luxury bedding and new amenity
kits have been available on our Johannesburg services from
the end of February and on Cape Town flights from early
March. We have also added service enhancements for Club
World customers.
In addition we will be refurbishing our Johannesburg lounge
at the end of the year, bringing it in line with the existing Galleries Lounge in Cape Town.
On Johannesburg, there will be all-A380 services this winter,
adding 680 seats a week to London.
And we are not ignoring World Traveller customers. In January we introduced an expanded menu, providing more quantity
and quantity as well as snack options throughout the flight, a
second meal and complimentary drinks.
We are not misled by the conventional wisdom that direct,
overnight services somehow give us an unassailable advantage.
We are continually investing in products and services and compete for every sale and work hard to keep every customer.
In a competitive market, customers can assess the offerings,
weigh these against their requirements and make their choice.
We will do everything we can to ensure that before they make
that decision, they have considered the benefits of a direct,
overnight flight to London, the possibility of a good night’s
sleep, a quality meal, the value of their time and the relative
cost.
Which brings me back to my colleague. As a struggling student he opted for the cheapest package, which involved routing
via Paris and catching the hovercraft to Dover and then a train
to London.
Besides the saving, he thought crossing the Channel by hovercraft would be novel and he would get to see the White Cliffs
before arriving in London.
As things turned out, the hovercraft service was cancelled
due to gales in the Channel. This necessitated a night in a cheap
Paris hotel, dinner and breakfast, before catching a ferry across
a still rough Channel.
Not only did he arrive in London later and poorer than if he
had booked the direct fares, but also still distinctly queasy from
the ferry crossing.
He has always chosen the most direct route since.
H BA has introduced an expanded
menu for World Traveller customers
as well as snack options throughout
flights.
22 Travel Industry Review | April/May 2018