Tier Point Run to Palm Springs in Dec 2023: Day 1 – Dublin DUB to London Heathrow LHR

By Nige on Thu 14 Dec 2023 at 17:00
Type: Post
Story: Tier Point Run to Palm Springs in Dec 2023
Tags: British Airways | DUB | Dublin | LHR | London | Trips

After a quick dash to passport control, it was fairly evident it was a quiet time for the airport. There were no other aircraft sat at the 200 gates and the corridors were empty. I think I woke up some of the border team when I got there.

The passport kiosks worked first time and then it was a bit of a jog through customs, landside, up the escalator and into Fasttrack Security. Very few people heading through security, so that was a doddle.

Once through security I didn’t need to put any additional energy into getting back to the gate.

By the time I got there, there was a very clear separation between Groups 1-3 and 4-9. Very few passengers in line, so I joined the limited queue and we started boarding about 5 mins later.

Group 1 was called on its own, which was good to hear.

On into seat 01F again. Different crew, so no need for “nice to see you again” etc.

Flight: BA0837 Equip: A319
Sched Depart: 15:00 Actual: 14:59
Sched Arrival: 16:30 Actual: 16:30
Takeoff: 15:20 Landing: 16:20

It was slightly brighter in Ireland. In fact, on final approach into Dublin, I spotted a rainbow, so the sun was definitely out!

The team did pretty well in turning the aircraft around and catching up on some of the time that was lost in departing late from Heathrow.

The Captain was expecting to arrive into Heathrow slightly ahead of schedule.

It was afternoon tea being served on the way back to Heathrow, and that’s always appreciated by the passenger sat in 01F!

However, it became apparent that afternoon tea had gone downhill a tad. There was no choice of fruit scones – I was just given one plain scone. Admittedly, it was lovely and light. But without the fruit, the scone was slightly disappointing.

I didn’t bother with the sandwiches – they didn’t look very appetising.

Then there was a lemon cheesecake thing with chocolate shavings on top. It wasn’t lemony enough and there was an underlying odd taste to it.

Other than that, another sky-high success for BA on the catering front!

Not the best BA crew I have had the pleasure of being served by. The guy next to me almost had his tray removed when he wasn’t done.

It was very cloudy on the way back into Heathrow; I couldn’t see anything of the city. I think I could just make out the bright lights of the Winter Wonderland, setup in Hyde Park every year at this time.

Arrived into T5 Gate A23. It always seems to take an age for BA to get the jet bridge attached. Not sure why, but tonight was another example.

Follow the whole story here: Tier Point Run to Palm Springs in Dec 2023