BA chief says ‘no apology’ for dropping free food

BA CEO Alex Cruz defended his decision to start charging for food on short-haul routes, saying the measure was necessary in order to compete in an environment of falling ticket prices. “Given some of the fares in the marketplace, we make no apology for making ourselves more efficient in various ways so we can consistently compete effectively,” Cruz said Wednesday. He added that BA remains, “and always will be,” a premium airline. The unit of IAG SA scrapped free meals on European flights in January, inviting passengers to buy onboard snacks and sandwiches from Marks & Spencer, who moved from discount unit Vueling in 2016, has also overhauled BA’s loyalty program and come under fire for planning to board passengers in the same class according to how much they paid. The carrier is seeking to compete with network peers Air France-KLM and Lufthansa and fend off discount specialists including Ryanair.<br/>