Candice Bridge is very angry. She regularly flies to the US with British Airways, which last week told her via email that her checked baggage allowance in Business Class is to be cut by one-third.

From October 11, BA is introducing a standard worldwide baggage policy of two pieces weighing no more than 23kg each for Club World passengers - previously those passengers travelling to the US, Canada or Mexico could carry two bags weighing up to 32kg each.

"To say I’m livid is an understatement," Candice told our Online Mailbag "This is a considerable drop in weight allowance and will cause problems for all passengers, but is especially unkind on those who’ve paid so much more so as to avoid this.

"I don’t travel with the kitchen sink but do have a lot of items for friends, each of my cases usually weighs between 25–30kg. I note that Virgin Atlantic continues to keep cabin baggage to a minimum, and they’re very generous with their checked luggage, allowing three pieces per passenger, each up to 32kg. I’m sure they’re rubbing their hands in glee at the passengers who will transfer their business from BA to Virgin."

Candice isn't alone. Mike Bassett, of Alton, Hampshire, also emailed Online Mailbag, ironically pointing out that BA's email announcing the change was sponsored by Samsonite. "Can you exert any pressure on BA to change it's policy (assuming of course others are as annoyed as myself?)" he asked.

Oh, they are Mike, they are. Alex McWhirter, consumer editor of Business Traveller magazine, said this morning: "We have had dozens and dozens of emails, with 90 per cent of people against BA's move. BA is shooting itself in the foot and there could be some very ugly scenes at Heathrow when these new rules come in on October 11.

"There is likely to be no discretion, with machines set to check weights and excess charges strictly applied - at a time when its rivals like KLM are still allowing 30kg. BA is not having a good run."

Cutbacks on baggage allowances (thereby saving fuel while also speeding the airport check-in process), industrial unrest, increased competition, T5, technology....the bad run effectively goes back three years, to May, 2003, when BA effectively dumped two-thirds of its Executive Club members in an overhaul of the sprawling frequent-flyer scheme. The Club had grown to five million members, belonging to one of five versions of the scheme wordwide - such was its complexity that 26,000 rules relate to membership and redemptions.

BA cannot afford to keep upsetting its business customers: those flying London-US routes alone account for 40 per cent of profits. To upset them twice in three years by taking away Executive Club status, then cutting down on baggage allowances, is not oversmart.

And it isn't just the premium passengers that are suffering. BA has endured three summers of discontent at Heathrow, including last year's Gate Gourmet dispute; cutbacks in staffing, a rigorous overhaul of costs, the rushed introduction of technology - and always, in the background, the relentless rise and rise of competition from low-cost carriers. Last year, Ryanair overtook BA to become the biggest airline in Europe.

“We’re the big boys now,” boasted Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary this week. "You’ll never find a Ryanair steward pressing a complimentary glass of champagne in your hand or seat pockets containing the last passenger’s wet wipes. True, there is no question of even a drinks voucher if your flight is delayed, but what do you expect for an average fare of £28 (BA’s fuel surcharge alone is £35)?"

The OFT is probing fuel surcharges, which rise to £70 for a long-haul return flight - (and contribute to taxes and extras of more than £130 in total on a US return flight). Two seniuor execuitves are on leave while the OFT looks into allegations of cartel price-fixing with surcharges. But in an interview with The Times last month, BA chief executive Willie Walsh vigorously defended the surcharges.

“Our fuel bill in 2006-07 is £2.2 billion — in 2004-05 it was £1.1 billion,” Walsh said. “The charge is not an ‘extra’ — it reflects the cost of the fuel. We could hedge (agree to buy fuel at a set price) today at US$75 a barrel — but if the price then dropped, I don’t think people would be prepared to pay. We’re absorbing some of it, but we’re in this business to make a profit and these are real costs.”

Some would argue that perhaps BA is moving too far, too fast in trying to increase profitability (BA announced last month that, for the first time in a decade, its short-haul operation made a profit, reversing losses that were running as high as £300 million a year five years ago).

In March, BA also slashed prices on many short-haul flights, with tickets to destinations such as Nice and Barcelona starting at £39 one way, including taxes and the fuel surcharge — more than 80 per cent cheaper than they were a decade ago. It's renamed short-haul operation, BA Connect, also scrapped the business class cabin from all regional airports to Europe.

Other observers note BA's need to continue its transformation into a lean, effecient carrier able to compete. Getting “fit for Terminal Five”, is Walsh’s current passion. When T5 opens in March 2008, it will be used exclusively by BA, taking its operations away from Terminals 1 and 4 and thus streamlining flight connections.

More importantly, it will change dramatically the way we use airports, with 80 per cent of passengers expected to check in online or use self-service kiosks. (Since April 25, passengers travelling on flights within the UK have only been able to check in using a self-service kiosk or via the carrier’s website, www.ba.com).

BA’s long-haul fleet will also be overhauled this summer, with £168 million due to be spent refurbishing the Club World and First Class cabins, and adding video-on- demand to every seat on the aircraft. Premium cabins will get higher-spec flat beds, and Walsh does not rule out the possibility of a celebrity chef coming in to improve the food.

Whether the use of a celebrity chef cuts much ice with business passengers having to pare down baggage allowances (or pay £100 or more extra for bags) remains to be seen. But given the bulging mailbag this week, it appears BA's transformation is still undergoing severe strains.

Times recommends

• 10 of Rough Guides' best images (and why)
• How to do Florence for free
• The UK and Ireland's 25 best Christmas events