The New Terminal 5 at London Heathrow
At the end of March the much awaited, and publicised, new Terminal opens at Heathrow. It will host all the British Airways flights. I will just miss the first few days of flights arriving as we will be coming back from our holiday in Thailand 2 days before the new T5 opens. Not sure if that is a good thing or bad things as history shows most new terminal opens around the world have massive hic-ups!
I was not sure if the email I received from a PR compaby working for either BA or BAA means that my travel blog has “arrived” itself as I got an email from them promoting the launch.
This is what it says:
“Gary,
On March 27, 2008 British Airways will redefine what it means to travel via London, with the opening of Terminal 5 (T5) – the new British Airways home at Heathrow Airport. T5 was designed to provide a calm experience for customers and put them back in control of their travel, thanks to the technology and flexible design of the building. T5 has the largest airport lounge complex in the world and an advanced baggage system, unlike any other major airport.
We wanted to share the first images of the airport and key facts that we thought would be of interest to you and your readers. Please find below a link to downloadable hi-res images and attached fact sheet on the terminal for your information: http://staging.porternovelli.com/ba/digitallibrary/
Key highlights:
– With 96 self-service kiosks and 140 customer service desks, customers will experience little to no queues. Passengers will be through security in less than 10 minutes.
– The layover experience will be far superior with 112 retail stores and restaurants– the largest retail offering of any UK airport– among other amenities.
– The terminal will be capable of handling 30 million customers a year and will have one of the most advanced baggage systems in the world, capable of handling at 12,000 bags per hour at up to 30km per hour. This is possible through the unique system which recognizes where the bags are against the clock, allowing late running bags, in particular transfer bags to be delivered right to the aircraft side by the baggage system. No other major airport has such a system.
– The largest airport lounge complex in the world is made up of six lounges to accommodate 2,500 passengers. They will be available for British Airways’ premium customers and will feature a host of luxurious facilities including a gold leaf bar, private cabanas and Elemis travel spas.
I would be glad to provide more information or arrange an interview with a British Airways executive. For further details please also visit http://www.terminal5.ba.com/.I will follow up with you, but please let me know if you have any questions in the meantime.
Best, Alyson “
