British Airways Deploys Airbus A350 on London-Nairobi Service

British Airways has started deploying the Airbus A350-1000 on its daily service between London Heathrow Airport and the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport Nairobi, Kenya.

The inaugural A350-1000 flight, operated as Flight BA065, touched down in Nairobi on 27 March, 2023. The flight was performed by G-XWBI, a 1.8-year old A350-1000 delivered to British Airways in 2021. The A350-1000 replaces the Boeing 777-200ER which has been serving the route since the airline retired its Boeing 747-400 fleet.

It's not very clear what necessited the aircraft swap. However, it may not be unconnected with the increased travel deman during the summer season as the three-class A350-1000 offers more seats (331) than the four- class Boeing 777-200ER (232) previously on the route.

What's Onboard?

Unlike the Boeing 777-200ER previously on the London-Nairobi route, the current fleet of British Airways Airbus A350 doesn't have first class cabin. It offers three cabins: Club World (Business Class), World Traveller Plus (Premium Economy Class) and World Traveller (Economy Class).

However, the state-of-the-art A350-1000 features Club Suite, British Airways newest generation business class seat which premiered on the A350-1000. The newly-branded 'Club Suite' offers direct-aisle access, a suite door for greater privacy and luxurious flat-bed seats in a 1-2-1 configuration.

The Club Suite offers 40% more storage, vanity unit and mirror, Wi-Fi, 18.5-inch inflight entertainment screens, high definition gate-to-gate programming, and USB power. Passengers travelling in the Club Suite can unwind in their own personal spaces to sit, sleep, work, or relax.

In addition to a new 56-seat Club World cabin, the three-cabin A350-1000 offers 56 seats in the latest World Traveller Plus cabin in a 2-4-2 configuration. The cabin features new furnishings, including a plush new pillow and warm quilt, new amenity kits and an enhanced service and an improved dining experience.

The World Traveller (economy) cabin offers 219 seats in a 3-3-3 configuration. Customers will also benefit from high-speed WiFi, allowing travellers to browse the internet on their personal electronic devices on the go.

In a world first, the airline mapped out their new Club Suite and A350 in lasers within the British Airways Laserdrome, a 100 square metre structure, towering 6 and a half metres high.

All passengers will benefit from the A350s modern cabin technology which promotes a feeling of well-being, space and calm due to reduced noise levels, high ceilings, ambient lighting and an optimised cabin altitude of 6,000ft for a more comfortable journey.

A quick check on British Airways website shows that the A350-1000 is scheduled to be on the London-Nairobi route from now until 28 October, 2023 after which the Boeing 777-200ER will return to the route.

British Airways currently has 13 Airbus A350-1000 in its fleet with 5 more on order. It received the first one on 29 July, 2019. In Africa, Nairobi is the third destination to see the British Airways Airbus A350-1000. The other two destinations are Cape Town and Accra.