Snowy560

Dear all
I'm thinking about arranging a trip to London in October. BA is very competitively priced, but they seem to still be operating 747s on that route and I assume they are pretty old. Would you be concerned? I am nervous flyer!

Thank you!

PS: just checked: they seem quite old!
https://www.airfleets.net/ageflotte/...%20Airways.htm

scrubbedexpat091

There is no reason to be concerned, BA has an excellent safety record.

Planes are expensive and airlines tend to keep them 20-25-30 years, Delta has some aircraft pushing 30 years old.

Air Canada some of the A320's are from the early 1990's and still flying safely.

You have probably been on 20+ year old aircraft before and didn't realize it since airlines are constantly doing maintenance and upgrading cabins to look modern.

Pollyana

British Airways would not be operating them if there was any cause for concern.Their maintenance standards are among the highest in the world.
If the ticket price is good,get in there quick

Snowy560

Thank you both for your reassurance. The price difference is quite significant compared with Air Canada!

BritInParis

If you’re concerned about safety then BA has never had a fatal accident. Also newer aircraft doesn’t necessarily equal safer aircraft as we’ve seen with the Boeing 737 MAX.

Snowy560

I know! We had a flight that was scheduled to be on a 737 MAX last Summer!

Engineer_abroad

have a look at same flight through FinnAir. It is a code shared flight operated by BA. We found flights with BA from YVR to LHR in March this year at discount of around 500.

no worries with a 747 just cos of age. The Boeing 737 max is brand new and I would rather be on the 747.

Snowy560

Yes I wouldn't have travelled on the MAX even if had been deemed "safe". But I'm considering the 747.

Paul_Shepherd

Your lucky!! I actually tried to get a flight with an airline that still operated 747s as I have never been on one and its a bucket list before they retire them..... they no longer operate them on the Toronto - Heathrow route...... Lufthansa is my only hope now, they are still operating them for another 2 or 3 years

So no need to worry about safety as other posters have said on here BA have an excellent record.

Hurlabrick

I would have no concerns whatsoever as regards the safety of any BA aircraft.

It is just that no matter how cheap, we would not fly BA, they are on our 'no fly' list as we have been let down by them so many times in the past.

scrubbedexpat091

BA often has the best fares out of Vancouver especially in slow and shoulder seasons when demand to Vancouver drops like a rock, doesn't help that they have no feed from a partner airline in Vancouver as Air Canada is in Star and BA in One World making YVR a star alliance hub so AC will connect passengers onto United, and other partners instead.

They do generally fly the A380 during peak season, and 747 rest of the year, LH still flies the 747 as well into YVR but its a dying breed so you would actually be quite fortunate to be able to experience a 747 before they go off into retirement over the next couple of years.

Snowy560

Didn't know BA flies a A380 during Peak Season!

Snowy560

Thanks everyone!
I love the discussion and the views!

Main messages seem to be:
BA is very safe
747s run by BA may be old but will be safe
grab cheap fares while you can
Compare safety of old 747 vs new 737 Max

scrubbedexpat091

They do generally May to end of September to the first week of October. Exact dates can vary a bit, looks like this year its May 1st to around October 2nd.

Paul_Shepherd

I think Lufthansa have just refurbished some of theirs, so they will probably go for another 5 years....but as a whole they are dropping out of fleets very quickly.... I never made Concorde, so I at least hope to make the other iconic passenger jet - the Queen of the skies before she retires..