British Airways has undercut rivals in the battle for passengers left ticket-less by the collapse of business-only airline Silverjet.
BA is offering Silverjet ticket-holders return Club World fares from Heathrow to New York for £1,099 and to Dubai for £1,159, provided they book by June 13. The carrier’s one-way businsess fare to New York for Silverjet clients is £799.
That compares to a Virgin Atlantic special offer of £899 one way to New York in business class and £759 each way to Dubai. Dubai-based Etihad Airways is offering flights to the city for £750 one way and £1,393 return.
However, the BA fares will rise by £15 one way and £30 return from Tuesday when an increase in the fuel surcharge comes into effect. All the quoted fares include tax and charges.
Silverjet went into administration today after failing to secure last-minute funding, leaving 9,500 passengers without flights – 7,000 of them in the UK.
The carrier was the last of three business-only airlines operating from the UK to be brought down by the soaring oil price and lack of credit. US-based Eos collapsed at the end of April and MaxJet in December.
Silverjet launched in January last year and flew twice daily Luton-New York and daily Luton-Dubai offering exclusively business-class seats at prices generally below the business-class rate of established airlines.