British Airways shows its retrofitted A380 cabins and a new Heathrow T5 lounge

On Oct 5, 2026, British Airways published two releases on its media centre: a full reveal of the redesigned A380 cabins and the first phase of a Heathrow lounge overhaul. Here is what the airline actually said.

The A380 cabins. The retrofitted A380 has four cabins across two decks, with 417 seats in total: 12 First, 106 Club World, 84 World Traveller Plus and 215 World Traveller. BA says the 106 Club Suite seats fill the whole upper deck and describes it as the world's largest business class cabin.

• First: a new suite whose centre divider opens to form a shared lounge for two, stowable tables for "buddy dining," a built-in mini bar, and a mattress and cotton duvet.
• Club World: a refreshed Club Suite with added storage, four cabin zones, dwell areas and Club Kitchens.
• World Traveller Plus: larger inflight entertainment screens, privacy wings and new bedding.
• World Traveller: larger screens, wider seats and upgraded bedding.

Timeline. The release says the first retrofitted A380 is expected to enter service "in the coming months," with a fleet-wide transformation to follow. It gives no aircraft-by-aircraft schedule and does not name routes. Some soft-product changes arrive sooner: new First dining and sleepwear on Heathrow outbound long-haul flights from Oct 1, the First amenity kit from Oct 6, and World Traveller Plus and World Traveller bedding phased in from November across long-haul aircraft (as of Oct 12, 2026; confirm on BA's media centre). Note the release's own start dates fall before its Oct 5 publication date, so check them with BA before you plan around them.

Heathrow lounges. BA calls this the first phase of a programme to redesign every Heathrow lounge over the coming years. Dates in the lounge release:

• Terminal 5 C Gates lounge, including a dedicated Concorde lounge: due to open at the end of 2028. Business class customers and Silver members of The British Airways Club and above can use it.
• Arrivals lounge: refurbishment starts early 2027, with opening by the end of 2027.
• Terminal 3 First check-in (with American Airlines): due to open "this winter."

All of these are as of Oct 12, 2026; confirm on BA's media centre. BA also says work is underway in Boston and Newark, with Geneva and San Francisco due for refreshes in 2027.

The Avios angle. Per PerkJolt's verified chart, checked Oct 8, 2026, Amex, Chase, Capital One and Bilt all transfer to British Airways Avios at 1:1. See the transfer partner chart. BA has not published award prices for the new cabins, so we have none to quote. If a London trip is on your list, start with our London guide.

Cabin and lounge timelines can shift, so confirm current dates on the British Airways media centre before you book around them.

Sources

• https://mediacentre.britishairways.com/
• https://mediacentre.britishairways.com/news/05102026/british-airways-reveals-all-new-first-club-suite-world-traveller-plus-and-world-traveller-cabins-as-part-of-its-multi-billion-investment-into-customer-experience (Oct 5, 2026)
• https://mediacentre.britishairways.com/news/05102026/british-airways-unveils-next-phase-of-heathrow-lounge-transformation-with-new-terminal-5-lounge (Oct 5, 2026)