Virginia Plain

After been on the ground for 6 days VTOP is doing 029 BGI today. It must have been in for a check! Does anyone know the actual date it's leaving as I'm flying to MCO in march both ways 747 and I Do Not want to see this parked at the gate when I'm boarding!

I have no insider knowledge but considering her delivery date was 28/01/1997 that could suggest she'll be gone by month-end

[Darren Wheeler]

But her Certificate of Airworthiness doesn't expire until 17/03/2013

http://www.caa.co.uk/application.aspx?c ... gmark=VTOP

Does anybody have any knowledge as to how any days prior to the expiration date that VTOP would be likely to be withdrawn, bearing in mind the repaint and any stripping out of the interior?

G-VTOP is going to St Lucia tomorrow.

Currently sitting in Barbados and just seen that I am on the old wreck for my journey home today. Can't believe my luck! I have flown with Virgin for years but I am afraid this could well be my last flight with them. I wonder if 'dick' would fly on virginia plain back from Barbados !

Maybe just maybe she was called back into service.....especially with G-VROY been delayed overnight from yesterday down there in the sun

But her Certificate of Airworthiness doesn't expire until 17/03/2013

http://www.caa.co.uk/application.aspx?c ... gmark=VTOP

We can but hope it shows 18/3 as the de-reg date. I would accept earlier though !

[honey lamb]

Currently sitting in Barbados and just seen that I am on the old wreck for my journey home today. Can't believe my luck! I have flown with Virgin for years but I am afraid this could well be my last flight with them. I wonder if 'dick' would fly on virginia plain back from Barbados !

A tad harsh don't you think, given that she is on the way out?

I have flown in some of the newest planes in service but the service has been sadly lacking. Unless the seat was totally dysfunctional I would have thought that would have been the least of my considerations. Last year I was on an A343 from DXB-LHR with the only one with the then-named V-Port. It was one of the worst flights I had ever experienced in UC. Six months later I was in a non-V-Port A343 from YVR-LHR but the attitude of the cabin crew was superb.

In other words, don't judge a book by its cover

After been on the ground for 6 days VTOP is doing 029 BGI today. It must have been in for a check! Does anyone know the actual date it's leaving

as I'm flying to MCO in march both ways 747 and I Do Not want to see this parked at the gate when I'm boarding!

G-VTOP will be withdrawn by then but she's doing the UVF flight today

Currently sitting in Barbados and just seen that I am on the old wreck for my journey home today. Can't believe my luck! I have flown with Virgin for years but I am afraid this could well be my last flight with them. I wonder if 'dick' would fly on virginia plain back from Barbados !

I think you will find that the grass isn't exactly greener elsewhere. For example, BA's 777 fleet is still some way from being able to offer AVOD on all flights.

After February, the only non-AVOD aircraft in the VS fleet will be three LHR-based A343's. They will also then have full consistency in the Premium Economy products across the fleet. The economy seats are subtley different between the fleets but not massively so. Upper will also be consistent across the non-A333 fleet. I would say that this is not bad at all in my book.

Always interested in what plane I will be on and trying to predict it.

The as flight actually comes around I find I do not give a damn and forget all about it..... about a week after get back home find myself tracking records back to see what one I was on !

Frustrating...... Will try and remember for Cape Town Flights at end of month !!!

G-VTOP is going to St Lucia tomorrow.

So where she of to Saturday ?|That's apart from VS032.

as long as it is'nt doing mco on monday i don't care !!!

I'm happy to see her go. My PE outbound to HAV in Oct was not a comfy experience in the bubble but the crew made up for it unlike an experience in PE to MCO a few months earlier

According to my source G-VTOP isn't flying tomorrow. However until you reach the gate you can't be certain

According to my source G-VTOP isn't flying tomorrow. However until you reach the gate you can't be certain

That's good news finger's crossed for Tuesday that she not on CUN93. 8D

Just to report back on my return journey from Barbados.
In actual fact the plain wasn't too bad. I had pre-booked two seats 64A & 64C and these were kept. We had plenty of room back there, the seats were a bit uncomfortable but fully functional. TV screen was a bit fuzzy but it did work. The crew was great and admitted that all the crew were really dissapointed to be working on VTOP that day but were making the best of it.
The flight took off 2 hours late due to the ground staff making major mistakes with allocating seats, double booking etc. The couple in front of us had pre-booked their seats months ago and after sitting in their seats for an hour was asked to move. The reason for this was that because of the plane changeover these seats were now 'more leg room' seats. They stood their ground and refused to move.
All in all VTOP wasn't that bad and the crew were fantastic. I have lots of virgin air miles to use up so I will stick with them for a while and at least VTOP will be dead and buried by my next trip to Barbados in April.

Sunday 13 Jan looks like not flying again today lucky people.

I believe TOP is not flying Monday either.

still parked since Saturday

Still parked. Airfleets.net say the aircraft is stored but I looked on Flightradar24 and it says it operated VS29 on the 14th when it was operated by VROY. This maybe the end for VTOP. If it is, her final service was VS032 from UVF

Still parked. Maybe they are removing the seats from the aircraft to prepare it to go back. They should really extend the lease and convert VTOP into a freighter. She was the 1100th 747 built and the aircraft built before her was the late 9V-SPK (Ln 1099) which crashed at TPE in 2000

Still parked. Maybe they are removing the seats from the aircraft to prepare it to go back. They should really extend the lease and convert VTOP into a freighter. She was the 1100th 747 built and the aircraft built before her was the late 9V-SPK (Ln 1099) which crashed at TPE in 2000

What use would VS have for a freighter? It will probably find a new home somewhere as a PAX jet.

Is the fact that Lady P is having a few days at LGW related to this, or is she there to provide increase UC capacity?

Increased UC capacity