BA handing out millions of free air miles after T5 fiasco ... even if you only complained about not getting an aisle seat

Some customers have been handed an extra 10,000 BA Miles – enough for a return trip from London to Paris – for relatively minor complaints such as being denied an aisle seat.

To earn that quantity of BA Miles through flying, a passenger would have to travel 10,000 actual miles, roughly a one-way flight to Sydney.

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In one email, BA Customer Relations told a passenger: "We have had a high number of letters from our customers recently and we are concerned that we are keeping our customers waiting for a response."

It disclosed that BA chief executive Willie Walsh and chairman Martin Broughton had set aside time to "personally review a significant number of customer letters and emails. Improvements happen as a result".

The letter added: "I have arranged to credit your Executive Club account with 10,000 BA Miles as a gesture of goodwill on our part to apologise that you did not receive the usual levels of service we pride ourselves on."

The male passenger, who asked not to be named, said: "It shows how desperate BA is to keep us after the Terminal 5 mess. At first, I thought it was a mistake, but it's not and I shall be keeping my free miles, thanks very much."

Shadow Transport Minister Stephen Hammond said: "After the Terminal 5 debacle, you can understand why BA is worried about losing business.

"However, at a time when insurers are refusing to cover people for lost baggage, it somewhat beggars belief that BA is not focusing on ensuring that holidaymakers do not face a summer of misery.

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"BA's first priority should be compensating people who were hit by the chaos that engulfed Terminal 5."

The huge BA holiday giveaway follows three weeks of chaos at the £4.3billion T5 during which baggage systems have broken down and failed to cope as hundreds of flights were cancelled.

At one stage, 28,000 bags were separated from their owners and 19,000 were sent to Milan to be sorted.

Last week, BA sacked two senior managers over the damage caused to the airline's reputation. Director of operations Gareth Kirkwood – who made a lacklustre television appearance when T5 opened on March 27 – and customer services director David Noyes have both left the company.

Mr Walsh has been forced to delay the transfer of BA's long-haul flights to T5 – due at the end of the month – until June. The transfer may now be phased in until the end of October in order to avoid a repeat of the opening fiasco.

BA says the T5 nightmare has cost it more than £16million, but that figure is expected to rise once passengers' compensation claims are fully settled.

The airline refused to say how many BA Miles it had given away since the T5 opening.

A spokesman said: "We recognise we have let our customers down and once again fully apologise for the difficulties many have faced.

"We do not discuss figures on compensation. We deal with all complaints on an individual basis."