Is BA getting its mojo back?

New lounges in Dubai and Miami could signal the end of a decade-long design slump

- WORDS RHYS JONES

STEP INSIDE ONE of British Airways' Heathrow lounges and it's hard to be impressed. Aside from some new furniture and carpets, they have not significantly changed since 2008. Often overcrowded, BA customers bemoan unglamorous hospital-grade toilets and furry little critters that manage to avoid being ensnared in discreet rodent traps...

Yet a different story is emerging in Dubai and Miami, where BA's new lounges have more in common with a Mayfair restaurant or hotel than an airline lounge of yore. Dubbed BA's "Global Lounge Concept", the new style replaces the 17-year-old Heathrow Galleries and is a genuine step-change in quality. (Turn to page 76 for a review.)