Well I finally lost my Virgin virginity and went from Gatwick to Havana and back again on a Virgin 747. Left on the 22nd and got back on Sunday morning. I flew PE, I am not that impressed.
I booked seat 15G when I booked the ticket as I like to sit on the aisle and be able to stretch my right leg into the aisle if needed. As mentioned in my other post I had to wait 18 minutes to check in but sure enough, the seat I reserved was given to me and I walked to security happy in the knowledge I was in what I hoped would be a decent seat.
It wasn't.
I was first to the gate and one of the first 6 to board, turning left was nice....but when I got to my seat what a disappointment about the legroom - or rather the lack of it. I'm a big PE flyer and fly PE on EVA Air and BA fairly frequently. The seat on EVA Air is the worst, but they give the most legroom....I'm 6ft 6ins tall but have a relatively short 34" inside leg measurement (my height is in my torso) but before I even sat down I could see this was going to be a squeeze.
When I sat down the seat itself proved to be extremely comfortable but my knees weren't that far from the back of the seat in front. When the passenger in front reclined their seat, it hit my knees. This is not what I wanted and doesn't happen on PE in BA or EVA air. I explained the problem to the FSM who understood the issue but was unable to re-seat me as the aircraft was full. He offered a customer comment form which I filled out (constructively) and the FSM then took the form from me and said he would write everything up in the flight log. An hour or so later the FSM returned confirming he had written everything up and offered to show me the flight log if I wished. I declined and thanked him for his actions. A floor mounted entertainment box also created a space problem for my left foot. I noted that 14B and 14H on the front row of PE had huge amounts of legroom and resolved to try and get one of those seats on the way back.
On the way back I asked at check-in to be moved to seat 14B or 14H in the front row of PE - both of which are on the aisle and have massive legroom. After 'a consideration' by the Cuban lady on check-in I was allocated 14H - a perfect seat. I made damn sure I was the first person to board the return flight, dumped my bag in the overhead bin and sat down pronto, just in case there was a seating dispute..... I stretched my legs forward and they didn't reach the bulkhead in front of me!!!! Great flight home.
So, if travelling PE on a 747 out of LGW I strongly suggest seats 14B and 14H as being the best. I'll know for next time...
And the service from the cabin crew on the way out blew away anything I have even witnessed on any airline (and I've been on privately chartered aircraft). The FSM gave clear direction and leadership to the team, all of whom worked very hard in all cabins and kept smiling throughout. The FSM publicly thanked the team via the PA system as we parked up at Havana. Not as good on the way back but there were a couple of stars in the team and I did blag an extra dinner as I was starving due to the delay coming back.
Arrived home on Sunday lunchtime to find a letter from Virgin apologising for the inconvenience and discomfort caused to my journey from LGW to HAV and enclosing £75 of Virgin discount vouchers.
I will post up TR's in the relevant forum shortly.
I booked seat 15G when I booked the ticket as I like to sit on the aisle and be able to stretch my right leg into the aisle if needed. As mentioned in my other post I had to wait 18 minutes to check in but sure enough, the seat I reserved was given to me and I walked to security happy in the knowledge I was in what I hoped would be a decent seat.
It wasn't.
I was first to the gate and one of the first 6 to board, turning left was nice....but when I got to my seat what a disappointment about the legroom - or rather the lack of it. I'm a big PE flyer and fly PE on EVA Air and BA fairly frequently. The seat on EVA Air is the worst, but they give the most legroom....I'm 6ft 6ins tall but have a relatively short 34" inside leg measurement (my height is in my torso) but before I even sat down I could see this was going to be a squeeze.
When I sat down the seat itself proved to be extremely comfortable but my knees weren't that far from the back of the seat in front. When the passenger in front reclined their seat, it hit my knees. This is not what I wanted and doesn't happen on PE in BA or EVA air. I explained the problem to the FSM who understood the issue but was unable to re-seat me as the aircraft was full. He offered a customer comment form which I filled out (constructively) and the FSM then took the form from me and said he would write everything up in the flight log. An hour or so later the FSM returned confirming he had written everything up and offered to show me the flight log if I wished. I declined and thanked him for his actions. A floor mounted entertainment box also created a space problem for my left foot. I noted that 14B and 14H on the front row of PE had huge amounts of legroom and resolved to try and get one of those seats on the way back.
On the way back I asked at check-in to be moved to seat 14B or 14H in the front row of PE - both of which are on the aisle and have massive legroom. After 'a consideration' by the Cuban lady on check-in I was allocated 14H - a perfect seat. I made damn sure I was the first person to board the return flight, dumped my bag in the overhead bin and sat down pronto, just in case there was a seating dispute..... I stretched my legs forward and they didn't reach the bulkhead in front of me!!!! Great flight home.
So, if travelling PE on a 747 out of LGW I strongly suggest seats 14B and 14H as being the best. I'll know for next time...
And the service from the cabin crew on the way out blew away anything I have even witnessed on any airline (and I've been on privately chartered aircraft). The FSM gave clear direction and leadership to the team, all of whom worked very hard in all cabins and kept smiling throughout. The FSM publicly thanked the team via the PA system as we parked up at Havana. Not as good on the way back but there were a couple of stars in the team and I did blag an extra dinner as I was starving due to the delay coming back.
Arrived home on Sunday lunchtime to find a letter from Virgin apologising for the inconvenience and discomfort caused to my journey from LGW to HAV and enclosing £75 of Virgin discount vouchers.
I will post up TR's in the relevant forum shortly.
Last edited by Neil on 12 Jan 2017, 19:22, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Staff member name removed as per site rules.