A royal touch for Star Alliance airlines, passengers at new Heathrow Terminal two

For all Start Alliance airlines and customers, it’s a new dawn in air travel with the opening of the new Heathrow Terminal two known as the Queen’s Terminal.Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II formally opened the new home of Star Alliance at London’s Heathrow Airport, unveiling a plaque that names the facility “Terminal 2: the Queen’s Terminal”, in recognition of her long association with the airport.Wearing an all-blue ensemble, the Queen was accompanied by her husband, Prince Philip, as she toured the £2.5billion development.Among the guests of honour were celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal and designer Cath Kidston, who have both set up outlets at T2.Airlines will move into the new T2 over the next six months and it will eventually be home to 26, including United Airlines, Air Canada, ANA and Air China.From Terminal 2, the Star Alliance airlines – Aegean Airlines, Air Canada, Air China, Air New Zealand, ANA, Asiana Airlines, Austrian, Avianca,

 Brussels Airlines, Croatia Airlines, Egypyt Air, Ethiopian Airlines, EVA Air, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines, Singapore Airlines, South African Airways, SWISS, TAP Portugal, Turkish Airlines, THAI, and United – will provide over 120 flights a day to 45 worldwide destinations in 25 countries. These provide access to Star Alliance’s global network of 1,269 destinations.Britain’s Queen, who last year celebrated the 60th anniversary of her coronation, also opened the former Terminal 2 building that once occupied the same site as the new purpose-built facility back in 1955. The new Terminal 2 started its operations smoothly earlier this month.This latest addition to Heathrow airport will house all 23 Star Alliance member airlines that serve the UK’s only hub airport. The old Heathrow Terminal Two was opened by the Queen in 1955 and was in operation for more than 50 years before it was demolished to make way for a new building

 capable of handling 20 million passengers a year.So far, United, Air Canada, Air China and ANA have successfully commenced operations there and the remaining airlines will move in gradually by November. This schedule ensures each move is as smooth as possible for passengers.Mark Schwab, Chief Executive Officer Star Alliance said: “It is terrific to see this new terminal coming to life as our Heathrow home after so many years of careful planning and construction. We are honoured that Her Majesty the Queen has lent her name to this fantastic new facility which will deliver an excellent service to Star Alliance customers at this major hub.”John Holland-Kaye, Heathrow Development Director and CEO designate, said: “Heathrow is delighted to welcome Her Majesty to open her new airport terminal.  Today is a celebration of the great work by many people and many organisations from across the country to create a new front door for the UK.“The completion of

 the new Queen’s Terminal is the culmination of an £11bn private investment programme that delivers a world-class hub airport that the UK can be proud of,” he added.Heathrow Airport welcomed The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh to an opening ceremony attended by over 1,000 people who were either involved in the construction of the building or are part of the team now working in the new terminal.  Her Majesty unveiled a commemorative plaque that will later be installed in a public part of the building for passengers and colleagues to see.  The U.K. Secretary of State for Transport, Patrick McLoughlin MP, gave a short address.According to him, ‘This prestigious event marks the successful completion of one of the UK’s largest construction projects.”The new terminal is a perfect example of cutting-edge technology and design that can combine to make the best use of capacity, to improve the passengers’ journey and experience, to boost the carbon

 efficiency by 40 per cent over the previous building, and to produce stunning architecture that further reinforces Heathrow’s reputation as a world class airport.”During the visit, the Queen met various people including the Chairman, Chief Executive and Development Director of Heathrow Airport; the Chief Executives of the Star Alliance airlines; Luis Vidal, the lead and concept architect for Terminal 2; a group of prominent British retailers who have recently opened premises in the new terminal; Richard Wilson, the designer of the Slipstream art installation situated in the forecourt of the terminal; and various representatives of companies across Britain who were part of the construction team.The 23 Star Alliance member airlines serving Heathrow represent over 20 perent of the airport’s traffic. It is the first time all Star Alliance carriers will be in a single Heathrow terminal, creating a superior travel experience for passengers, new business

 opportunities for the member airlines and providing an improved working environment for employees.The Star Alliance network was established in 1997 as the first truly global airline alliance to offer worldwide reach, recognition and seamless service to the international traveller. Its acceptance by the market has been recognized by numerous awards, including the Air Transport World Market Leadership Award and Best Airline Alliance by both Business Traveller Magazine and Skytrax. The member airlines are: Adria Airways, Aegean Airlines, Air Canada, Air China, Air New Zealand, ANA, Asiana Airlines, Austrian, Avianca, Brussels Airlines, Copa Airlines, Croatia Airlines, EGYPTAIR, Ethiopian Airlines, EVA Air, LOT Polish Airlines, Lufthansa, Scandinavian Airlines, Shenzhen Airlines, Singapore Airlines, South African Airways, SWISS, TAP Portugal, Turkish Airlines, THAI and United. Air India has been announced as a future member airline with Avianca Brazil to

 join under the existing Avianca membership. Overall, the Star Alliance network offers more than 18,000 daily flights to 1,269 airports in 193 countries.Meanwhile, the airlines in this alliance are moving to the new terminal in phases as the authority will be providing them with advance information about which airlines or destinations will be switching terminal. This includes details of when flights will move to the new Terminal 2 which is now open for business.Travellers who use the airlines in the Star alliance should bear in mind that the moves may be subject to change as they are advised to double-check on their day of travel using  the ‘Which terminal’ section on the heathrow airport guide website.

Sade Williams