LHR Immigration Fast Track Pink Cards?

I've been given these pink cards while in Upper before. Didn't happen this trip; in fact, they didn't seem to offer landing cards to pax at all (or it happened very quickly while I was changing into my sleep suit).

Are Upper passengers supposed to get these? Is there some other criteria?

Alex

They are only for "....passengers who are not members of the European Union" (I've got one here) and I think they are only given out on demand. I did not get one coming in on a flight a couple of weeks ago.

Cheers

Martin

[mcmbenjamin]

Only for Upper and non EU folks.

Question: Who funds this Fast Track method? Is it funded via taxes to the passenger?

Thinking out loud: There are three tiers to air taxes in the UK/BAA; Lowest cabin/cheapest taxes, mid cabin/mid taxes, and highest cabin/highest taxes.

On UA,DL, BA, etc J and F get Fast Track (mid and high).

Does W on VS pay the mid tier UK/BAA taxes?

I am a British Citizen and I was given an immigration fast track pass for Heathrow when I flew in Business Class on Singapore Airlines

[honey lamb]

To be honest Fast Track isn't always that fast if you bear in mind that you will be behind non-EU passengers some of whom will be probed more deeply as to their motives in visiting Britain. We once used them at LHR and watched as economy passengers on our flight whizzed past in the normal lines.

In any case the e-gates for those with biometric passports is much quicker

As I an a non-EU passenger, I want the Fast Track lane. I'll be sure to ask for one next time.

Usually the probe for me is simply "why are you here? (biz/leisure)" followed by "what business is that?" Doesn't take that long.

Thanks!

Only for Upper and non EU folks.

Question: Who funds this Fast Track method? Is it funded via taxes to the passenger?

Thinking out loud: There are three tiers to air taxes in the UK/BAA; Lowest cabin/cheapest taxes, mid cabin/mid taxes, and highest cabin/highest taxes.

On UA,DL, BA, etc J and F get Fast Track (mid and high).

Does W on VS pay the mid tier UK/BAA taxes?

Fast Track is funded by the airlines in additionn to the Airport Fees ad as part of the base fare. A LHR-NYC return dummy booking shows the Passenger Service Charge (i.e. UB the airport fees charged by BAA for running LHR) to be the same for Y as it is for PE and UC - £ 30.63 per pax.


There are only two level of Taxes i.e. APD in the UK

Lower Rate - for Y cabin
Other Rate - for non Y cabins so PE/UC/Business/First/WT+

[mcmbenjamin]

Thanks - Interesting.

So airlines and the passengers are paying equally paying for something that not all who pay for it can use.... makes sense to someone...

Thanks - Interesting.

So airlines and the passengers are paying equally paying for something that not all who pay for it can use.... makes sense to someone...

Well you can say that about anything. e.g. all UC pax pay for the CH as part of the ticket even if they don't use it - should the non users get a £ 60 refund? Should the pax (probbaly a v-flyer ): ) who stays for 5 hours be charged extra?. Just as with my council and other taxes I am paying for schools (and lots of other services for that matter) that I don't use.

VS will be paying BAA extra for the dedicated staff at the private security channel at LHR. Are pax in Y paying for a minute proportion of that as that as part of the base fare? probably yes as part of the greater scheme of VS ticket pricing but a UC pax will be paying proportionatly more. But again that happens in lots of other areas in life too.

BAA charges the airline a fixed fee per pax no matter what cabin they are in as it costs the same, on average, per pax to process them through and run the airport. Anything else would just make it more complicated.

[mcmbenjamin]

I guess I should have worded my reply tighter

All UC pax pay for and are entitled to access to the CH. All UC pax pay for and ARE NOT entitled to use Fast Track. All UC pax are not required to and may not use these benefits BUT some pay for something the cannot use due to a rule.

[honey lamb]

I guess I should have worded my reply tighter

All UC pax pay for and are entitled to access to the CH. All UC pax pay for and ARE NOT entitled to use Fast Track. All UC pax are not required to and may not use these benefits BUT some pay for something the cannot use due to a rule.

You could say that for any UC add-on benefits. How many do not use the Clubhouses for a variety of reasons; because they aren't there in time, because they are with a group of co-workers who are not entitled to CH entry. I recall one guy at SFO saying he would not use the CH there because it wasn't airside!

What about the DTCI? I've used it once but the likelihood of my ever using it again is small since I travel on a connecting flight. I've still paid for it.

You are wrong to say all UC pax are not entitled to use Fast Track. I have and I've not been turned away as an EU citizen. It's just that there is no need to use it and there are other ways just as easy, if not easier, for EU citizens to enter the UK

[mcmbenjamin]

You are wrong to say all UC pax are not entitled to use Fast Track. I have and I've not been turned away as an EU citizen. It's just that there is no need to use it and there are other ways just as easy, if not easier, for EU citizens to enter the UK

Are EU citizens entitled to use Fast Track? From the VS pink card "NOTE: Fast Track Arrivals is available for passengers who are not members of the European Union."

From this, some (EU members) are not allowed to use Fast Track.

Traveling with a group that some may and may not have access, lounge location, arriving late to use CH, and DTCI* are results of choices that the passenger makes. Largely, being a citizen of a EU member state is not an active choice a passenger makes. VS largely serves as it hubs a EU member state. VS advertises Fast Track as a benefit. A large majority of the passengers are likely citizens of EU member states.

It has irked me for some time that according to the rule set, many are paying for what benefits few. Also irks me that VS advertise something that most cannot use according to the rule set.

I only know what is on the Pink card. I would be happy to learn if there are other rules.

[honey lamb]

You are wrong to say all UC pax are not entitled to use Fast Track. I have and I've not been turned away as an EU citizen. It's just that there is no need to use it and there are other ways just as easy, if not easier, for EU citizens to enter the UK

Are EU citizens entitled to use Fast Track? From the VS pink card "NOTE: Fast Track Arrivals is available for passengers who are not members of the European Union."

From this, some (EU members) are not allowed to use Fast Track.

Traveling with a group that some may and may not have access, lounge location, arriving late to use CH, and DTCI* are results of choices that the passenger makes. Largely, being a citizen of a EU member state is not an active choice a passenger makes. VS largely serves as it hubs a EU member state. VS advertises Fast Track as a benefit. A large majority of the passengers are likely citizens of EU member states.

It has irked me for some time that according to the rule set, many are paying for what benefits few. Also irks me that VS advertise something that most cannot use according to the rule set.

I only know what is on the Pink card. I would be happy to learn if there are other rules.

Like I said, I have picked up the card and used it and have not been turned away. The cabin crew come round and ask if you need it and it is up to you to decide.

At least it is a benefit that is offered to UC passengers wanting to enter the UK unlike the USA who lump everyone together, can be extremely unpleasant and on the one occasion that I had a tight but legal connection made even tighter by the late departure of the flight from LHR, were unwilling to process us ahead of those waiting, all of whom were more than obliging because of our connections.

Quite frankly, Ben, anything that will help my fellow travellers is OK by me so long as I get reciprocated somewhere along my travels. The USA doesn't do that in terms of UC passengers who are not US citizens which is fine if your aircraft lands before all the others but not so if you are the third or fourth international aircraft that arrives at the said airport. Surely you remember waiting over an hour for Aer John and me to exit immigration some years ago.