British Airways today, Thursday, January 29, announced plans for a £12 million business centre to house the airline`s four thousand flight and cabin crew.

The new Crew Reporting Centre (CRC) - where staff report for duty before flying - will involve the remodelling of an existing 80,000 sq. ft airport office development and will double the capacity of the current ten-year-old facility. The new reporting centre will be closer to the airport`s North Terminal from where British Airways and its partners operate around 1,200 flights a week. It is also proposed that some Customer Service employees will share the facility.

The announcement comes just three months after British Airways unveiled plans to spend £12 million on customer service improvements at the airport to match a 25 per cent increase in longhaul capacity this Summer .

The investment will allow the airline to sustain its planned growth rate, which has seen services increase five-fold in five years and the number of Gatwick-based flight and cabin crew double in the past two years.

Martin Wyatt, , British Airways General Manager, Gatwick said: “We`re growing faster at Gatwick than anywhere else worldwide and this new facility, right in the heart of our operations, reinforces our commitment to the continued development of this international hub. It will ensure we have the best available facilities on the ground for our people who provide the best inflight service in the air.”

Design experts will be drawing on some of the key features from British Airways new £200 million corporate headquarters at Waterside, near Heathrow, to ensure the best possible working environment for staff.

In line with British Airways `good neighbour `policy, the re-location of the new CRC will also provide easier access to and from public transport for the airline`s employees. Work on the new facility is due to be completed in time for Summer 1999.

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