The British Airways First Class amenity kit, crockery and bedding improvements are now live

British Airways officially launched its ‘soft’ improvements to First Class on Sunday, and they should be fully rolled out across the network by today.

SaturdayKid on Flyertalk posted some images, of which I have borrowed a couple.  You can see all of his images and some other feedback on Flyertalk here.

General feedback from a couple of HfP readers who are also BA crew is positive with customers being especially happy with the new noise cancelling headphones.  The loss of the Liberty amenity kits does seem to be felt, however, with the new Temperley ones not really measuring up in terms of style or bag quality.

Here is the new amenity kit, the new noise-cancelling headphones from Meridian and the new day blanket:

Here is the new sleep suit, also from Temperley – male and female versions are available.  Apparently you can now mix and match the sizing of the top and bottom halves for the first time.

Whilst not pictured, your hot towel now comes on a little glass tray!

There is also new crockery, cutlery and glassware.  Here are some official BA pictures:

and

The new teapot is also apparently very impressive!

There is also good feedback on the new bedding with praise for the high thread count.

New British Airways First Class food

A new menu has also been introduced.  Here is a sample selection for the main meal.

As you will see, canapes have returned, served with the initial drinks service:

Canapes

Shropshire blue cheese with spiced apple jelly and candied pecans, Kinglas smoked salmon with cream cheese and caviar, Cumbrian air-dried salami with sliced black olive, sun-blushed tomatoes and cornichon

Here is a current main meal menu:

Appetisers

Cured beef bresaola with tonnato dressing, anchovies, tomato, caper

Kidderton Ash goat’s cheese with hazelnuts, asparagus, raddish

Seared scallops with truffle pea puree, maple-cured gammon, pea shoots

Vichyssoise soup with Braddock Whites poached duck egg, potato salad

Seasonal mixed leaf salad with spicy lemon vinaigrette or creamy honey mustard dressing

Entrees (why has BA started using the word entree?)

Seared fillet of aged Herefordshire beef with caramelised caper butter, red wine jus, roasted vine-tomatoes, wild mushrooms, pine nuts

Seared fillet of halibut with Brixham crab bisque, preserved lemon, buttered samphire

Roasted breast of corn-fed free-range chicken with Winbirri Bacchus white wine, thyme and bread sauce

Ricotta black pepper ravioli with lovage pesto, charred leeks, black olives, red vein sorrel

All served with side orders of potato fondant with truffle salt, broccoli with almonds, glazed chantenay carrots

Cheese

Belton Farm Red Fox

Fourme d’Ambert

Double-Barrel Lincolnshire Poacher

Normandy Camembert

Desserts

Chocolate and orange delice with almond granola, sugared pistachios

Blueberry and nectarine charlotte

Vanilla ice cream with caramel sauce, raspberries

Chocolates by Lauden

The wine list and champagne list appears much as it was, which means you’re still getting bottles selling for £12.72 retail.  However, British Airways has added a cocktail list including mocktails.

All in all, it seems more like evolution than revolution although there is no doubt that the overall standard has improved.  I look forward to trying it out at some point.

How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (December 2021)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

British Airways American Express

5,000 Avios for signing up, no annual fee and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending ….. Read our full review

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

25,000 Avios and the UK’s most valuable credit card perk – the 2-4-1 companion voucher Read our full review

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points, such as:

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & two airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

30,000 points and an unbeatable set of travel benefits – for a fee Read our full review

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital On Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios:

Capital On Tap Business Rewards Visa

The most generous Avios Visa or Mastercard for a limited company Read our full review

You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus:

British Airways Accelerating Business American Express

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.

(Want to earn more Avios?  Click here to visit our home page for our latest articles on earning and spending your Avios points and click here to see how to earn more Avios this month from offers and promotions.)