BA First Class to New York: A Fairy Tale It Was Not
Happy New Year everyone 🙂 I hope the festive period treated you kindly, and that any travel misadventures were limited to overcooked Turkey rather than entirely perplexing First Class experiences !
As we ease ourselves back into reality, I thought it only fitting to start the year with a fresh British Airways First Class review. This particular trip took place back in late October, on a flight from London Heathrow to New York.
With another Amex Companion Voucher approaching expiry, I’d been searching for BA First availability high and low for some key cities of interest. As anyone who routinely does this, knows, BA First award availability is becoming increasingly… rare.
I had originally hoped to do an Asia trip, but BA had other ideas for me. New York was the only route with workable availability, so off to JFK I went.
What followed was, quite genuinely, one of the least “First Class” First Class experiences I’ve had in over 30 such flights. Not a disaster, but certainly a new low for BA in my experience.
Anyway, let’s get into it.
Flight Particulars
Route: London Heathrow (LHR) to New York JFK
Flight No: BA113
Departure Time: 16:20
Travel Time: October 2025
Aircraft: Boeing 777-300ER
Seats/Suite: 2K First Class
First Wing Check-In
I arrived at Heathrow Terminal 5 at around 1:20pm, roughly three hours before departure, and made my way to the far right of the terminal, the First Wing.
I’d have preferred an earlier departure, but the only other First options were a 10am (absolutely not) or a 6pm flight ( far too late ). So 4:30pm it was.
Check-in was blissfully quiet and efficient, as it almost always is here. I was travelling with carry-on only, which is the case for about 90% of my trips.
Note: in November, the First Wing went through a minor renovation, which now includes some red panelling and subtle accents, that some say makes it feel like Qatar Airways !
The private security experience here is always fast and efficient..
Credit where it’s due: British Airways has absolutely nailed this part of the experience.
The First Wing remains spacious, calm, and well-staffed. That matters more than ever as even as actual First Class footprint shrinks, BA Gold membership has ballooned thanks to corporate travellers.
If only the rest of the experience scaled as well as the check-in.
The Concorde Room
I won’t labour this section too much, I re-reviewed the Concorde Room in detail just a few months ago.
After a couple of drinks at the bar, I did sit down for lunch, though it was a slightly rushed affair. By the time I’d secured a table, boarding was already about 30 minutes away.
I ordered the lobster mac & cheese. When it arrived — roughly ten minutes before I planned to leave — it didn’t look particularly inspiring.
Thankfully, it tasted better than it photographed. I ate most of it at speed, channelled my inner Olympic sprinter, and dashed off toward the gate.
Boarding BA First Class
I generally find First Class boarding to be shambolic across most airlines, with the notable exception of Lufthansa and Air France, who take this part more seriously and escort you straight from lounge to aircraft like a VIP you ought to feel like.
I did not get to capture our 777 but here’s a beautiful 350 I walked past instead 🙂
BA 777 First Class Cabin
With most of British Airway’s 777s being either new or retrofitted now, you will enjoy a consistent experience, with First Class featuring the standard 8 Suites across 2 rows..
The aircraft was a 14-year-old Boeing 777, retrofitted with BA’s latest First and Club Suites.
At first glance, the cabin looked fresh and inviting.
The flight was fully booked in First ( according to inventory) , with all but one passenger already onboard.
And then, almost immediately, things started going sideways.
When asked what I’d like to drink, “Champagne, please“, I responded.
Here the crew also asked, if I wanted pyjamas and slippers. “Yes, I’ll have a Medium”
Neither appeared. Least not till halfway through the flight.
As I settled in, I noticed the IFE remote was sticky. Visibly sticky…
Upon closer inspection, it was stained with what looked like red wine – almost certainly from the previous occupant. So much for deep cleaning !? If that is even a thing with BA.
I flagged this to the crew and asked for some wet wipes.
Around this time, the Cabin Service Manager, Emma, introduced herself with a polite welcome.
Seven or eight minutes later, my Champagne finally arrived. along with the post-take-off canapés…
Just about the time … the aircraft door closed.
Ah yes. Nothing screams First Class quite like having to neck a £150 champagne like a common peasant. Also I was unsure when BA decided to introduce the trio of canapes during boarding ?
At this point, it became clear the final First passenger was a no show, one less person for the crew to NOT impress ?! As we taxied, I also noticed something missing: bottled water. BA usually stocks every First seat with it. Not today.
It took 25 minutes after take-off for the wet wipes to finally appear, accompanied by a faint apology about them being “misplaced.”
A promising start. Truly.
BA First Class to New York Service
Given the 4:30pm departure and having had lunch in the Concorde Room, I opted to dine about two hours after take-off.
Snacks were offered in the meantime alongside more champagne…
BA was offering two champagnes on this flight:
-
Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame 2015 — excellent, and thoroughly enjoyed
-
Piper-Heidsieck Rosé Brut — perfectly fine, but very much business-class-adjacent
What I found surprising was, whilst I realize I asked to dine later, nearly two hours passed with zero crew interaction, at all.
Dinner was eventually initiated at 6:50pm UK time, about 20 minutes later than I asked.
The table set at a glacial pace..
The menu for this flight was as follows:
First up was the amuse-bouche – Isle of Wight tomatoes, pickled cucumber, cheese, rocket in pesto
Simple start.
Then… service all but grounded to a halt after this.
The guy serving me just disappeared – though I could hear plenty of noise and busy work happening in the galley, in that time I did have the CSM, Emma offer me bread, twice !
Twenty minutes passed before the starter arrived. At 7.15pm
The truffled Cornish chicken and leek terrine sounded wonderful.
Looked less so…
I wasn’t sure what to make of it, neither loving or hating it … lets just say it was acceptable.
For main course I opted for a classic, Welsh lamb rack and slow-braised shoulder..
This was better in parts. The shoulder was lovely. The rest? Forgettable.
When this was served, I thought something was missing, but then midway through I realized..
Yorkshire pudding.
In the menu, but not the plate ! What happened here?
Worse still: from table-set to main-course finish, I was never once offered water. Not once. This is usually done when table is set.
I eventually had to ring the call bell like I was flying economy back in 2009.
For dessert I opted for the warm crêpes Suzette – was genuinely good..
Though far heavier than expected.
This meant I was far too full to even attempt any of the cheese selection, so had to pass on that one.
First Class Bed & Pyjamas, the Great Redemption
With around three hours of flight time left, I accepted the offer to have my bed made by the Purser..
The turndown service was done with perfect flare, however, it was after all a different person.
The BA First bed remains superb — genuinely among the most comfortable in the sky, and yes, I still prefer it to Singapore Airlines and Etihad Apartments even.
The pyjamas were excellent.
The slippers felt… scratchy, but better than nothing.
I napped for about 90 minutes and got up roughly an hour before landing.
Pre-Landing
The Cabin Service Manager noticed I was awake and asked if I’d like anything.
I wasn’t hungry — and even if I had been or wanted to order something for review purposes, the “Light snack” menu was identical to at least two other recent BA First flights.
The menu did create a sense of déjà vu. Fish butty is fine, and admittedly a characteristically British offering. It is on the heavy side, however.
So I opted for popcorn and decided to find a couple of episodes of something to watch.
I did rather enjoy the last hour in the Suite, almost like I was lounging at home but with views of the open sky – so obviously infinitely better 🙂
Almost too soon, we touched down in a crisp, cold New York.
Overall Thoughts
This wasn’t a bad flight. But I can’t help wonder some Aviation reviewers would have have a field day after this, with sensational clickbait videos and scathing reviews to follow.
Yet, I will say for First Class, this was deeply unimpressive.
The hard product remains strong, and on Avios + companion voucher redemption alone, it’s still defensible value. On a cash ticket, I’d have been significantly less charitable, personally.
The service flow failed almost from the outset, and the crew member assigned to my side felt disengaged, under-trained, or simply indifferent. The Cabin Service Manager, to her credit, clearly noticed and quietly intervened.
BA First Class doesn’t need theatrics.
It needs consistency, attentiveness, and a little more pride.
On this flight, those things were largely missing. A fairy tale? No. In fairness, my expectations were tapered going in.
The truth off the matter is, the people who pay full dime for First Class fares, scarcely have time to complain about it ! So I doubt BA would magically become more consistent in 2026.
Faze, founder of Wander Up Front and Elevate Your Stay, is a London-based travel specialist with a deep passion for aviation. With over 2 million miles flown, he has spent the last 7 years focusing on First and Business class experiences.
Faze provides straightforward, no-frills insights into premium airline products and services, sharing what matters to help travellers make informed choices.
Follow him on his adventures and behind the scene stories on Instagram !