British Airways

Food and drink4 answers

Halal meals

Airline policyHalal is a special meal to order in advance; there are no special meals in short-haul economy.

British Airways offers halal as a special meal to order in advance. Its Halal meal is prepared in accordance with Halal guidelines, uses Halal meat and contains no pork, alcohol or their derivatives. Orders close 24 hours before flights from Heathrow or Gatwick and 36 hours before flights to them. Special meals aren't available in Euro Traveller, BA's short-haul economy cabin, where no complimentary meal is served, and BA says it may not be able to provide the preferred option on every flight.

Does the meal turn up

Traveller or press reportForum posters say the Muslim meal is a fixed set menu, so ordering it means no main-menu choice.

On FlyerTalk, a poster says the Muslim meal is a set meal on all long-haul services that rarely changes, unlike the monthly main menu, and that choosing it means you cannot expect a main meal; another says crew often claim all meals on Middle East flights are halal, but that after booking a Muslim meal from Heathrow they were served a dish different from the menu. A Head for Points forum member flying First to Bahrain says the pre-ordered special is more often than not vegetarian and sub-optimal, and that BA gave contradictory information about whether its menu was halal.

Alcohol on board

Airline policyAlcohol is part of the service from World Traveller up; no dry routes are published.

British Airways' food and drink page lists hot, cold and alcoholic drinks in World Traveller, a glass of sparkling wine to start in World Traveller Plus, and cocktails, Champagne, spirits and wines alongside dining; its First lounges offer the finest wines and Champagnes. We found no British Airways policy on dry routes.

Ramadan

Traveller or press reportIn Ramadan 2023 BA offered dates and laban on 14 Heathrow routes; we found no later programme.

ProPakistani reported in March 2023 that British Airways would offer dates and laban to fasting passengers during Ramadan, with cabin crew trying to save a meal until they could break their fast, on routes to and from Heathrow including Dubai, Kuwait, Islamabad, Riyadh, Bahrain, Doha, Cairo, Algiers, Amman, Marrakech, Tirana, Antalya, Dalaman and Istanbul. We found no British Airways page on a Ramadan service.

Not in British Airways's published policies: Who certifies them · On partner flights · Amenity kit

PrayerNothing published

Not in British Airways's published policies: Space to pray · Qibla and prayer times · Crew and prayer · Water for istinja · Prayer rooms in lounges

Crew and service3 answers

Hijab in crew uniform

Airline policyThe 2023 uniform includes a tunic and hijab option.

British Airways' new uniform collection, unveiled in January 2023 to more than 30,000 colleagues, includes a tunic and hijab option. Earlier, the European Court of Human Rights recorded that female Muslim ground staff at British Airways were authorised to wear hijab in BA-approved colours.

Crew training

Traveller or press reportForum posters say crew often tell passengers all Middle East meals are halal, which BA does not publish.

Forum posters say crew on Middle East routes often tell passengers that all meals on those flights are halal, which British Airways does not publish; a First passenger reports contradictory answers from BA before a second call confirmed that the meat on flights from the Middle East is halal. In a 2017 tribunal case, a Muslim cabin crew member was removed from a return flight's crew after colleagues alleged he had been reading the Koran under a blanket; the tribunal dismissed his discrimination claims.

Reported incidents

Airline policyNo passenger cases found; a tribunal dismissed a Muslim crew member's discrimination claim.

We found no documented case of British Airways profiling, offloading or refusing service to a Muslim passenger; the religion-or-belief cases we found were brought by employees. In Ahmed v British Airways (case 3325705/2017), a Muslim cabin crew member was removed from the return flight's crew after colleagues alleged he had been reading the Koran under a blanket on the outward flight; the employment tribunal found he had not been discriminated against on grounds of race or of religion or belief, and dismissed his claims.

Not in British Airways's published policies: Help from women staff · Eid and Ramadan on board

Seating and families1 answer

Sitting together as a family

Airline policyEach child under 12 sits next to an adult free; keeping the whole family together may cost extra.

British Airways says that to make sure a family sits together it's best to choose seats in advance, which may cost extra. If seats aren't chosen, BA assigns them a few days before departure and they may be split across rows or the aisle, but BA makes sure each child under 12 sits next to an adult from the booking; children over 12 are booked as adults and may sit separately.

Not in British Airways's published policies: Changing seats

Hajj, Umrah and routes2 answers

Zamzam water

Airline policyFive litres of Zamzam fly free from Jeddah, but BA's Jeddah route ended in April 2026.

British Airways lets each passenger aged two or over travelling from Jeddah to London, including onward connections on the same booking, check in one sealed five-litre container of official Zamzam water in addition to the checked baggage allowance, at any time of year, for Hajj or Umrah; the containers travel in a separate part of the hold. The allowance covers Jeddah departures only, and Head for Points reported that BA's Jeddah route would end on 24 April 2026 and is permanently cancelled.

Routes to Muslim-majority countries

Traveller or press reportFlies to Dubai, Doha, Riyadh, Cairo, Islamabad and more, but its Jeddah route ended in April 2026.

British Airways' in-flight iftar service for Ramadan 2023 named Heathrow routes to Dubai, Kuwait, Islamabad, Riyadh, Bahrain, Doha, Cairo, Algiers, Amman, Marrakech, Tirana, Antalya, Dalaman and Istanbul. Head for Points reported in April 2026 that the Jeddah route would end on 24 April and is permanently cancelled, that Riyadh was cut to daily from mid-May and Dubai and Doha to daily from 1 July, and that Bahrain and Amman were suspended until the winter timetable at the end of October.