I’ve travelled quite a lot for work and leisure to all continents for the last 10 years. One of the most pleasant experiences has always been to spend time at the business lounges in different airports while waiting to board my flight. However, the pandemic has been hitting the aviation industry segment very hardly and a lot has changed. Let’s talk.

Couple of weeks ago, I took a flight for the first time in 5 months. Yes, the period where Europe started the lockdown and self-isolation. It was the first time in more than 10 years for me that I didn’t travel anywhere for so long. I used to be a crazy world traveller. Yes, I do care about sustainability but don’t blame me, I cannot fight every single battle.

Kristina and I had a friend’s wedding in central Germany, that was the reason we travelled after so long. Of course, following all Government recommendations. Interestingly enough, we noticed 5 details that are not so obvious and you should be aware of in case you travel.

1. Before Buying Tickets

We checked our local and destination Government Travel advices websites. We followed their current guidance and everything was OK to travel to Germany. So, we purchased our flight tickets, booked hotels and started to plan.

If you live in the UK please bear in mind that currently you need to provide your journey and contact details before you travel to the UK. So, 2 days before heading back to the UK, we completed the online form. You need to show this on arrival when back to your home country. Our destination country, Germany, didn’t require this. But in other countries you might need to complete it.

Keep checking your local and destination Government websites. Don’t even try to purchase a flight ticket without doing your homework and understanding coronavirus requirements in both countries. Very important.

2. Arrival To Heathrow Airport T5

We took a cab from home to Terminal 5. Typically, an hour journey for us. Face masks all the time. Here’s the spicy sauce. When approaching Security Controls, this is where the airport needs to improve.

They still ask to take out your laptops, tablets and liquid toiletries and put them on separate trays to be x-rayed. This means you’ll need to make contact with trays that other people touched. Even the shoes. Certainly, not very pandemic friendly. If you see these trays, you’ll quickly understand that they are not super clean.

I know they have at least two 3D scanners that eliminate the need for passengers to remove stuff from their bags because I used these ones last year in some of my trips from Terminal 5 when flying British Airways. But these were not working when we travelled. And by the way, they should extend these new scanners to all terminals because it’s unacceptable that we need to touch everything during pandemic times.

That’s where I feel that Heathrow needs to improve. I can understand it might be a big investment but on the other hand it’s high risk to travel these days with the “old school” scanner system.

3. British Airways Business Lounge

This is my favourite part. I do love lounges. It’s a way for me to work in a quieter environment or disconnect when I need.

I often use one of the Galleries lounges from British Airways in Heathrow Terminal 5. Light meals, snacks, fine wines, glass of champagne. Generally, they have a good variety of food and drinks. If you have fly long haul and you’re Gold you can even access Elemis Spa and get a treatment. Great perk.

However, this time it was a bit different. No more buffet or food exposed to people. All tables have bar codes. So, we picked our table and scanned the bar code. This took us to the online menu. We added what we wanted to eat and drink to the cart. We checked out (Free) and the waitress came with our order. Literally, it was similar to buying on Amazon: add stuff to your cart, check out and delivery. No interaction.

I have to say that this was very efficient and I can only say good things about this system. On the other hand, people might question the “human touch” here. Yes, it’s less personalised but this is pandemic times so anything that can reduce the contact is appreciated.

They also removed the newspapers and magazines sections to avoid unnecessary contact. They give you access to PressReader (more than 7,000 digital newspapers and magazines). I used to love getting a hard copy of Financial Times and MoneyWeek. It’s a business lounge, don’t expect me to read Tabloids!

You need to wear face masks at all times except while you eat of course. Hand Sanitiser is also available in multiple areas.

4. Boarding

After a nice vegetable soup with sourdough bread and some drinks, it was time to go to the Gate for our flight to Berlin. I’m a BA Gold member, so generally have priority for boarding. In this case, I was happy I didn’t have any priority as it makes sense to board by rows to minimise contact.

From rear to front, the boarding started. It was fine but still they were touching our passports. Didn’t they say that we need to minimise contact? Can’t they just see instead of touching?

5. The Flight

They gave us a complimentary kit with hand sanitiser and antibacterial towel. No complimentary face mask though.

They also offered a new food service to reduce physical contact with their crew. Literally a transparent plastic bag already prepared with some snacks and water.

We travelled on an Airbus A319, the layout was 6 seats per row (3 left, corridor and 3 right). I had an aisle seat, Kristina a middle one and somebody else the windows one. I know airlines won’t get rid of the middle seat or switch to 2 seats only as this represents a financial loss. But again, we try to minimise contact but there’s no distance between passengers at all.

Final Thoughts

Look, don’t get me wrong. I’m trying to be constructive but I need to be honest and tell you guys what’s working and the areas where they can improve.

At the end of the day, the pandemic has changed most of the industries. I do believe this should also be an opportunity to develop the commercial airlines industry. I know they had put new protective measures on the ground and in the air for safety reasons. This was mandatory to survive.

This has been extremely challenging times and airlines have reacted in record time. Hats off. Can we now please focus on the areas for improvement?