AGENTS are banking on British Airways delaying or even dropping plans to axe commission with the appointment of an emergency senior management team to run the airline.
Retailers are trying to persuade acting chief executive Lord Marshall to lead a review of commission plans following the sacking of Bob Ayling.
The trade is also hopeful a new BA chief executive will vastly improve the airline’s declining relationship with agents.
Ayling introduced a range of anti-agent measures including plans to scrap commission, increase direct sales and the launch of low-cost carrier Go.
ABTA aviation committee chairman Sandy MacPherson wrote to Lord Marshall as soon as Ayling’s departure was confirmed, urging him to reinstate a 9% commission rate in return for ABTA’s support in building up sales.
“Given an unambiguous commitment by BA to embrace the trade as an effective vehicle of distribution, I am confident the industry will enthusiastically put its weight behind your determination to restore the airline’s profitability,” writes MacPherson.
He reminded Lord Marshall that the relationship with agents has hit rock bottom in tandem with BA’s declining share price and public support.
“It is always a mystery to me that BA can not correlate its bad performance on sales with that of a bad attitude to agents,” said MacPherson.
Paul Allan, chairman of Ian Allan Travel and a member of the Guild of Business Travel Agents’ executive council, said: “Lord Marshall has worked closely with the trade in the past and has been sympathetic.
“There was huge loyalty to BA, but this has been upset. BA has distanced itself from the trade recently. It wouldn’t do any harm to get the loyalty back.”
ARTACcommercial director Julian Foster, who meets BA later this month to discuss the commission scrapping proposal, said Lord Marshall has an opportunity to build bridges with agents but in the long term it depends on what direction a new chief executive will take.
BA head of UK and Ireland sales Tiffany Hall said it was too early to say if any changes would be made to commission plans. The Interim Bonus Agreement is being axed at the end of this month to leave agents on a basic 7% commission for the next nine months before it is scrapped completely in January.
Lord Marshall is expected to oversee the chief executive’s role for up to a year while a successor is found for Ayling. Front runners include US Airways chairman Steve Wolf, Qantas chief executive James Strong and BA commercial director Carl Michel.
Lord Marshall is also expected to make staff changes but the airline has denied rumours that marketing director Martin George is set to leave.
The new chief executive will evaluate BA’s controversial strategy of concentrating on premium passengers at the expense of economy; whether Go can take over short-haul routes for BA; and alliance plans.
n See BA news, page 5; Comment and Analysis,page 8