British Airways increases Chinese footprint

British Airways is opening two new cabin crew bases, in Shanghai and Beijing, to offer tailored services for Chinese customers flying to London and will recruit 35 local cabin crew for the base in Beijing and 30 for the base in Shanghai.

"The new crew will be recruited in China to offer Chinese customers the language skills and familiar culture they value for a comfortable journey," says Richard Tams, the airline's executive vice-president in China.

With more than 30 years of experience in China, the airline has direct flights to London from Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu. It has daily flights to London from Beijing and Shanghai and three weekly flights from Chengdu in its winter schedule.

Cabin crew from the base in Singapore now provide all the on-board Chinese language services. The new recruits will join duty from next summer, after they have gone through extensive flight safety and service training program at the airline's London headquarters.

"All flights from China to London will have at least two Chinese crew on board," says Tams.

The move is part of British Airways' on-going strategy in China, called China 2020, rolled out since Tams took his position last September, when the airline listed China as separate from the Asia-Pacific region, a recognition of the importance and size of the Chinese market.

Andrew Crawley, chief commercial officer at the airline, said in January: "China is one of our fastest-growing markets, and we see great opportunities here. We are not satisfied (with the numbers) and three cities are not enough. We see the growth of the Chinese economy, the huge (demand for) international travel."

Earlier this year, the company adopted measures such as serving Chinese meals onboard, recruiting Chinese-speaking pilots and offering Chinese-language onboard magazines to woo Chinese customers.

With the Chinese government encouraging small and medium-sized enterprises to invest overseas, the airline has revitalized its On Business loyalty scheme to make it a more feasible option for China's SMEs.

"There are very few requirements. Companies with more than two employees can be a member and the entry-tier members can spend as little as 21,250 yuan ($3,351) to earn enough points to redeem a reward flight on UK domestic routes and flights in Europe," Tams says.

As the China market becomes more competitive, particularly with regards to Europe, Tams says the airline's strategy in China is to increase awareness of its brand and to position it as a luxury brand.

"We will increase our investment, continue using China's social media to increase the profile of the brand and explore partnerships with other UK brands to elevate awareness of the brand."

BA went into a partnership with the UK embassy in China, to fly the Magna Carta on its tour of China in Beijing, Guangzhou and Shanghai, as part of the 800th anniversary global tour of the Magna Carta.

"This comes after the announcement we made a few months ago of our new partnership with the British Council and again working with the British government to help export British culture to China," he says.

Despite China's slower economic growth, Tams says BA has a long-term view of the business in China and is optimistic about the market.

"We recognize that the Chinese government said the economy was moving into the 'new normal' and yet 6.9 percent GDP growth is still extremely impressive," he says. "After President Xi's visit to the UK, we are particularly optimistic. The tourism, business and cultural links between the two countries will continue to grow rapidly. We have seen that in our numbers as well."

lijing2009@chinadaily.com.cn