British Airways drops ladies and gentlemen for gender-neutral greetings

Goodbye, ladies and gentlemen: UK flagship carrier BA has changed to gender neutral addresses. Photo / Tango Tsuttie, Unsplash

British Airways is the latest airline to drop gender-specific greetings aboard their aircraft.

After Lufthansa said auf wiedersehen to 'Damen und Herren' in July and Japan Airlines switched up its English-language greetings in 2020, the UK's flagship carrier is also adjusting its onboard announcements to use more inclusive language.

The phrase "ladies and gentlemen" will be replaced with "everyone" on BA flights.

The change is to make flights feel more inclusive and better reflect the mix of customers, The Sunday Telegraph reported.

"We celebrate diversity and inclusion and we're committed to ensuring that all our customers feel welcome when travelling with us," said a spokesperson for the airline.

Air Canada was the first national carrier to make the move to gender-neutral language in 2019.

British Airways was praised by some passengers who found the term "ladies and gentlemen" too formal, old fashioned and patronising.

The PA change was met by hostility from some travellers and pundits.

Commentator Piers Morgan dismissed the move as "virtue-signalling nonsense".

I hope @British_Airways staff ignore this virtue-signalling nonsense. The eradication of gender specific language is a pathetic surrender to the woke brigade. Most people identify as men or women, where are OUR rights to be called what WE want to be called? https://t.co/8WWbSkpmSF

— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) October 10, 2021

WWP founder and UK marketing guru Martin Sorrell was unimpressed by the branding decision.

"The important thing is not the announcements, it's the food, the Wi-Fi, the service, the speed of getting on and off the plane," he told the Telegraph.

The diversity offering was not a core issue for travellers but an easy win for the airline, calling it a "sign of the times".

Air New Zealand updated onboard PAs to encompass all genders in 2020, said a spokesperson for the airline.

"At this time we moved from 'Kia ora ladies and gentleman' to using 'Kia ora everyone'."