New British Airways terminal a royal pain

If you happened to have flown through British Airways' new Terminal 5 at London's Heathrow on April Fool's Day, you might have discovered that lost luggage is no joke -- but Terminal 5 is.

For five years, the Brits have been touting the new terminal, which was designed to make all other terminals pale in comparison. But when the state-of-the-art equipment the airport installed to ensure speedy departures and on-time luggage arrivals for as many as 30 million passengers each year was up and running … it really wasn't.

Just days after the new terminal opened, passengers were forced to sleep on the floors because of canceled flights. Other passengers took off, but their luggage didn't. According to some reports, there could be as many as 30,000 lost bags looking for their owners, which could take weeks. The situation became so desperate, bags were being sent to other locations for processing.

Most travelers handled the chaos without losing control. Except for one supermodel. When an agent told Naomi Campbell her luggage was lost, she lost it. She attacked the agent, and then the police officer who attempted to remove her from the aircraft. She left in cuffs after cuffing the cop.

For years, passengers have dealt with overcrowded conditions and outdated equipment at Heathrow. Last fall, Caryl Barnes lost her shirt at Heathrow, along with the rest of her luggage. And she wasn't alone. Some conventioneers (myself included), who had to make connections at Heathrow, found ourselves not holding our bags when we landed in Manchester, England.

This wasn't a fluke. It happened so often, connecting airports planned for it. When we arrived in Manchester, the public address system announced the names of those passengers who should go directly to the customer service counter without passing the baggage carousels. For most of us, our luggage met us at our hotels within 48 hours. Others gave new meaning to traveling light and didn't catch up with their bags until they got home.

Throughout the convention, British Airway officials assured us Heathrow horror stories would soon be a thing of the past. We were told the new glass and steel structure, designed by Richard Rogers, would change the lives of British Airways travelers arriving and departing through Heathrow.

According to Tom Benjamin, whose flight was delayed but whose luggage wasn't, the structure is spectacular. Glass ceilings and walls allow travelers to watch nearly all takeoffs and landings -- if there are any.

"They say on a clear day, you can see Windsor Castle," said Tom, who's a bit skeptical about a clear day in London. "But you will see a virtual shopping mecca."

The new terminal houses luxury shops such as Harrods and the only airport Tiffany's in Europe. Gourmet restaurants including Gordon Ramsey's first airport restaurant, Plane Food, replaces standard airport fare. The five-story terminal sports two huge atriums, six lounges and unique sculptures. And it's supposed to have quick-check kiosks and the ability to deliver every checked bag within 30 minutes of the plane's arrival.

On March 14, two weeks before the scheduled opening of Terminal 5, Queen Elizabeth II toured the new terminal with her husband, Prince Philip. She gave it an official royal welcome. But without the fast-track baggage and on-time flights, it's just another pretty face which has become a royal pain in the neck for passengers, British Airways and Britain herself.

Gail Todd, a free-lance writer,worked as a flight attendant for more than 30years. She can be reached via e-mail at gailtodd@aol.com.