British Airways takes flight with new services

LONDON (JP): British Airways recently launched two new services as it strives to maintain its position as one of the world's top international airlines.

The first is the Club World business-class cabin. The cabin features fully flat beds that enable passengers to lie down and sleep with the maximum possible comfort. The armchair-style seats transform into 180-centimeter beds and are available for long- haul travel.

The seats are designed in forward and rearward facing pairs, with 20 in the upper decks of the airline's B747s and up to 50 in the main decks of its B747s and B777s.

The seats were designed to maximize personal space and privacy, with each seat featuring individual private screens.

BA's Stuart Hickman said the Club World cabins were part of the airline's plan to redefine business travel in the 21st century.

The second new service introduced by BA is the World Traveler Plus, which commenced services in March 2001, on the Melbourne- Singapore-London route. The World Traveler Plus is a spacious cabin set between the business and economy classes, with more leg room and larger seats for discerning cost-conscious travelers.

"The World Traveler Plus is a radical new class of travel that is tailored to the needs of economy customers who want comfort at and affordable premium," said BA chairman Lord Marshall.

BA now flies to 255 cities in 96 countries with 366 aircraft and serves more than 650 destinations worldwide. From Indonesia, BA has flexible getaways to London via Singapore or Hong Kong, following the phasing-out of the London-Jakarta route as a direct impact of the economic crisis that hit Indonesia in 1997. (hhr)