A horrified luxury traveller couple have vowed to boycott British Airways after sharing 'unacceptable' footage of conditions on a £4,000 first-class flight:
Jarvis Marcos was flying from Mexico back to London with his girlfriend, Kamara Harding, 33, on 7 August when they experienced a catalogue of issues including 'dirty, scuffed seats' and water dripping from the roof.
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Unimpressed Jarvis claims that not only was the cabin 'falling to pieces' but the seats appeared not to have been cleaned, which he found particularly worrying given the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
In addition, the metal framework of the seat was visible through the padding and his seat didn't recline fully into a bed, due to an apparent malfunction.
Despite Jarvis claiming the 11-hour round-trip would have cost £4,000 ($5,400) without his air miles, he was stunned when the airline offered him just £150 ($204) per person voucher as compensation.
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The 37-year-old even compared his BA video with footage of his first class flights on Emirates to show off what service he enjoyed - including bottles of Dom Perignon champagne and 'mounds of caviar'.
Jarvis, who runs a luxury travel review website and travel agency, flies frequently reviewing airlines and hotels - always in first or business class.
Alright for some, innit?
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After his experience, Jarvis is now urging other people to choose a different airline for their first-class travel - 'horrified' at the thought of people spending their money on a 'shockingly bad' experience.
British Airways apologised and said their aircraft go for maintenance on a regular basis and they are investigating why Jarvis' experience 'clearly didn't meet their usual high standards on this occasion'.
Jarvis, from West London, said: "There were large gouges missing out of the seat itself and the surrounding of the seat.
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"The seat also didn't fully recline into a bed despite that being something they advertise as part of the service, because the mechanics of the seat were broken. The seats also clearly hadn't been cleaned, which especially during covid is just not acceptable.
"There were crumbs in the storage cubby holes and streaks of a sticky liquid on the tray tables which had dried on and not been cleaned.
"The air conditioning above my girlfriend's seat was leaking and dripping water onto her which is also particularly unacceptable during covid, as that's what filters the air."
Jarvis said he feels that British Airways have always been 'bottom of the barrel' when it comes to the first-class flight experience compared to other airlines.
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But he said nothing could've prepared him for the 'state of disrepair' of this particular plane as well as the overall 'let-down' service.
He claimed the 'broken-down' plane is nothing like the luxury advertised by the flight giant and is urging travellers to fly with other airlines.
In addition, Jarvis claimed the food wasn't up to scratch, being 'stale, swimming in oil and thoroughly overcooked' despite the hefty price tag.
Jarvis said: "There's no reason why a paying customer in any cabin should expect a seat that isn't clean or has air conditioning dripping on them.
"What makes it particularly bad is that first class is advertised as being this supremely luxurious experience but that's not true."
After posting about his experience online, Jarvis said he received messages from other fellow first-class travellers and friends who claim to have had similar issues with British Airways flights.
One former passenger even said he'd sat in the exact seat shown in Jarvis' video back in January, suggesting passengers have been experiencing the same 'state of disrepair' for at least seven months.
British Airways said the health and safety of their customers was their top priority and that their aircraft go for maintenance on a regular basis, while they have invested £6.5 billion in their fleet, inflight cabin product and catering.
A spokesperson for British Airways said: "We've apologised to Mr Marcos and are investigating what went wrong, as his experience clearly didn't meet our usual high standards on this occasion."
Featured Image Credit: The Luxury Traveller/Kennedy News and MediaTopics: british airways, News, travel, Community