Passenger Experience: Travelling through Heathrow T5
On Tuesday 7th July, the Passenger Services Group of the HCEB met for their second virtual meeting. Sarah, one of their independent members, could not attend because she was travelling on holiday with her family. However, the timings meant she was able to report ‘live’ to the Group on her journey through Terminal 5. Read her step-by-step report below.
As a well-seasoned traveller, the prospect of getting back on an aeroplane felt like I was going on a flight for the first time ever. Just the sight of Terminal 5 coming into view got the heart beating a little faster!
To give all passengers a clear view of the experience, this report covers the passenger journey from arrival through to departure (and a little bit about the flight and our arrival destination).
Travelling to Heathrow
As we live in East Surrey, the quickest way for us to get to Heathrow is by car. The original plan was to travel in our own car and park it on site. However, the only parking currently available at the airport is short stay. As we are away for a while, this option proved costly (£322), so we opted to book a taxi.
The drop off zone at T5 was almost totally devoid of cars (when usually there are taxis and cars everywhere and the taxi rank was empty. It’s worth noting that not all entrances at the drop off zone are open so it’s worth checking before getting dropped off.
LAND SIDE
1. Check-In
Only travellers are allowed into the terminal.
The terminal is well signed informing passengers to wear face masks and alerting you to Heathrow’s temperature check trial.
Hand sanitisers are prevalent throughout the check-in area.
The check-in area itself was quite eerie – rather than the usual hustle and bustle of T5, it was hard to spot the passengers.
2. Security
The security area was extremely quiet, but surprisingly quite slow due to passengers who were there being distanced from each other by being diverted to different security scanners.
Everyone also had to remove their shoes, not just those with heels or thick soles. Even our daughter had to remove her shoes.
Should there be an increase in passenger numbers, the passenger distancing and removal of shoes for everyone will make a usual bottleneck even worse, and I don’t believe it is sustainable.
AIR SIDE
1. Shops
A large proportion of the shops are open but with less passengers, they are noticeably quiet.
Shoppers will also need to have a purpose in the duty-free shops as it is one directional shopping, making it difficult to browse. If you suddenly think of something you would like, which you have already walked past, you will have to exit and re-enter the shop and start again.
2. Food Shops/Restaurants and Bars
Passengers need to be alerted to the fact that there are very few food shops open (this may change with the latest easing of restrictions). This is important, especially for those travelling with children or with medical conditions requiring food, as the airline is also not offering an on-board food service (a small snack is handed out).
3. Other Observations in the Terminal
It was sad to note that there are still very few flights up on the boards, which means you see every departing flight for the day.
For parents, the kids play area is closed, so don’t expect there to be entertainment for them.
4. Boarding
Passengers are boarded from the seats at the back of the plane forward, so passengers should be at the departure gate on time.
Passengers must briefly remove their mask to show their face for the passport check.
It was encouraging to see that the excellent signage in the terminal continued onto the gangway, ensuring that when boarding passengers are still social distancing.
5. On the Plane
Prior to the flight BA sent an email detailing what passengers should expect, which was helpful.
Our flight was supposedly 85% booked, yet it looked like only about 70% of passengers showed up.
Cabin crew mentioned that some passengers are just not arriving for their flight, and that return flights to Heathrow are almost empty.
All passengers are given hand a sachet of hand sanitiser and an anti-bacterial wipe.
The COVID-19 specific hygiene briefing did not form part of the usual safety briefing
The pre-packaged food consisted of a bag of crisps, biscuits, and water (economy class) which is more than was given pre-COVID-19. This reflects the fact that ‘buy-on-board’ is not in operation.
ARRIVAL IN FARO, PORTUGAL
A health questionnaire is handed out to all passengers (other than children) which must be completed on board and passengers cannot disembark until these have been completed and handed over to Portuguese authorities on arrival in Portugal.
Passengers are asked to disembark in small groups from the front seats to the back.
Unlike the Heathrow, there didn’t appear to be as much signage across the terminal, and apparently temperature checks are being carried but, but I didn’t manage to spot the heat sensor cameras.
Overall, this is probably one of our best experiences through Heathrow. The airport has clearly made huge efforts to make their passengers feel safe and it really shows.