British Airways departure lounges for troops

THE British Forces Foundation teamed up with British Airways to give Britain’s servicemen and women the VIP treatment they deserve as they go off on active service.

The forces’ departure lounge at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus has been completely upgraded to give troops a more comfortable send off before their flights. Improvements have taken place using furniture and fittings flown in from British Airways’ former luxury pavilion departure lounge at Heathrow’s Terminal Four.

Now personnel can relax using some of the furniture enjoyed by customers travelling in the airline’s prestigious Club World, before being deployed on missions.

Troops returning from active duty will also use the refurbished lounge to unwind, after their 36-hour decompression period in Cyprus to acclimatise to their new surroundings before returning home to the UK.

RAF Akrotiri Station Commander, Group Captain John Bessell, said: “I want to express my thanks to The British Forces Foundation and British Airways for their continuing support for the military and for the long term benefits from these kind of projects to the troops returning from operations.”

Squadron Leader John Fairgrieve, OC Joint Movements Squadron, RAF Akrotiri, added: “Many people have put an enormous amount of effort into making this initiative happen. I am grateful to everyone on my team, the Commander British Forces Cyprus, The British Forces Foundation and British Airways for pulling this together. The excellent service we provide troops travelling to and from Iraq and Afghanistan has just become even better.”

Andrew Crawley, head of sales at British Airways, said: "We have a longstanding relationship with the Ministry of Defence and they are a very important client of British Airways.

“It is a real honour for us to be able to offer our help to upgrade the lounge in RAF Akrotiri for troops to relax and unwind in prior to their return to the UK. It's an opportunity for us to support our boys and demonstrate to the Ministry of Defence how much we value their continued support of British Airways."

The refit was carried out with military precision to improve facilities for servicemen at the busy airbase, used by thousands of servicemen every week. Upholstered lounge chairs, oak console tables, coffee tables and slatted timber screens were specially selected and put into storage by Amaryllis, who provide furnishings for British Airways lounges and identify items for recycling and reuse. They were then shipped from Southampton by the MOD in containers to the Cyprus base.

Servicemen provided the manpower to remove some of the old furniture to enable a deep clean to take place before the refit could begin.

The Station Commander’s lounge was also given a makeover as well as two outdoor terraces, which were fitted out with rattan chairs and tables. Specially framed British Airways heritage prints were also hung on the walls to improve conditions.

Angeline Mayhead, who is responsible for lounge development at British Airways, oversaw the makeover, said: “British Airways is very proud to be associated with the UK’s armed forces. We’ve worked very closely with the RAF in Cyprus and the British Forces Foundation to make sure that all the servicemen who depart through RAF Akrotiri can now do so in more comfort and style. Our troops deserve the best.”

Mark Cann, Director of The British Forces Foundation, said: “This was a great idea and an opportunity for the BFF to capitalise on its already healthy relationship with BA. What we aim to achieve by the project, is a visual statement to the men and women of the Armed Forces who are travelling to and from operations, that they are valued and appreciated at all times.

“The BFF which is well known for delivering morale projects, is able through this lounge and the fantastic help of BA, to say to the troops; they are important, never forgotten and deserve the best whenever and wherever it can be delivered.”