V-Flyer

My first trip report so go easy on me.

Having got up at the crack of dawn it was soon apparent that it was a little chilly and you could have knocked me down with feather duster when the trusty Honda temperature gauge indicated an outside temperature of -8 degress celcius.

Having checked in online on friday morning to secure seat 80K on the upper deck (which in my humble opinion is the only place to be on the LGW fleet). Failed to print the boarding pass at home so I popped to the PE check in to drop off my bag and obtain my boarding pass. check in took 5 mins with only one person in front of me. On a long shot I asked if the exit seat 75K was free and to my eternal surprise it was so I quickly changed seats and set off with a spring in my step.

To point out the check in agent was extremely friendly, chatty and had a nice big smile, which to me is invaluable [y].

Off to security, where I noticced on the boarding card a 'fast track' sticker although as per the norm fast track was closed so it was off to the usual security line which in fairness only took 5 minutes from entry to exit.

Based on previous Gatwick experiences I decided to book the servisair lounge, which obviously is miles apart/behind the Virgin clubhouse offering but was good enough for me to get away from the madding crowds, although to be honest, it was quieter at gatwick than previous journeys and I am sure this is a sign of the 'credit crunch' times. The servisair lounge was clean, quiet, well stocked with drinks, snacks, newspapers and a good view of the runway for those runway enthusiasts.

Off to gate 19 where additional security checks were being carried out. After a short wait priority boarding was in operation in the usual format and when on board the usual sparkling wine, bucks fizz and orange juice was offered. The crew were visible and helpful throughtout the lead up to take off.

Due to the inclement weather we were delayed by 1 hour and 45 minutes with a new take off time of 12.30 due to ATC restrictions because of the fog/reduced visibility.

Once airborne we were given our menus. Just as the drinks round was commencing the crew were ordered to take their seats due to heavy turbulence which lasted for twenty minutes, and I would say that the seat belt sign was on for at least a third of the flight due to moderate - heavy turbulence.

The cabin crew were friendly and courteous throughout and I have to say the majority of the upper deck passengers were demanding with continous drinks orders but nothing was too much trouble. After 6 hours the bar was closed 'to save some for the return leg', this issue is well documented on V-Flyer but is it that hard to stock more alcohol, vegas is a booze hungry route and I am sure some of this is to stop any over zealous passengers but this should be on a case by case basis. I was chatting to the steward about this issue and she asked me if I wanted another alcoholic drink, not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth I duly requested a Vodka & Lemonade which was delivered in an SAS style operation in order to not rouse the suspicions of my fellow passengers. This was much appreciated and I think she knew that I hadnt been taking the mickey with the alcohol.

Meals were nicely spread out with dinner being the usual chicken, beef or pasta option. I opted for the chicken which to be honest wont win the chef any michellin stars but it was edible. Further into the flight a wrap (chicken or spinach) was offered and an hour before landing a roll and yoghurt/fruit bar was given out.

Throughout the flight the stewards brought out water/apple/orange juice.

The 2 cabin crew were excellent and contributed to setting the PE product aside from economy with the level of service.

IFE was odyssey which worked well, due to the way Odysey operates I didnt really watch a film in full just flicked through the offerings which were relatively upto date.

One thing that I havent seen for a long time was a member of the flight deck hanging around the upper deck talking to some of the passengers, which is nice for the passengers and went on for some time.

On landing there was the usual scrum of the people at the front of the upper deck fighting past the people at the back to get off first, I can never understand people who start getting up when the seat belt signs were still on and losing all their manners. Everyone has had a long flight and wants to get to their destination but come on. I felt the stewards could have policed this better but as they say 'you can lead a horse to water'

The only bit to let the trip down was waiting 45 minutes for the PE bags to come off AFTER THE ECONOMY BAGS, I was plane to baggage belt in 10 minutes and then waited 45 for my bags to get off the plane [V].

I am now residing in my 28th floor hotel room at the Bellagio enjoying some high calorie food and beer. Return trip report to follow when time permits.

Regards

Missy-Tank

Missy

Thanks for an interetsing and informative TR on a well trodden route[y]

The crew did really well and shows that this route is not always the horror it is played up to be.

Enjoy that Bellagio[}:)][}:)]

buns

Nice trip report [y]

The alcohol issue does always seem to be on the LAS flights. I wouldnt want any crew having to deal with rude or abusive passengers but it does seem unfair to close the bar and effect everybody, especially when a few glasses or something are part of the flight for most of us. Shame about the bags, its a bit of a lottery at times but how hard can it be to unload the J/W bins first?

Enjoy the Bellagio [y]

Thanks,
Sarah

Hey great trip report! I was operating the vs 15 that tookk off soon after you and we hit the turbulence too -not fun!

As for the alcohol issue, we have a real problem on the vegas flights. Twice now I have had to have police meet the a/c in LAS due to drunken passengers being intimidating and abusive to other pax.
The problem is that it is nie on impossible to monitor how much each of the 450 passengers has had to drink, and you also dont know how much they have drunk in the terminal.
As you know people queue up at the galleys for drinks and if there is a group of people, quie often they will take it in turns to go and get the drinks so we are not seeing the same people being served again and again.
Then of course if someone gets drunk it's our fault, and the rest of the passengers blame us for serving them alcohol! Also people are very cunning and if turned away at one galley they will go to the galley at the other end of the a/c to get drinks, or even upstairs.
Upper Class and Premium Economy upstairs are easier to police as you can keep a closer eye on people but the problem comes when you decide to stop serving certain people because they have had enough. If they then see you serving someone else alcohol it creates a nasty situation and they can turn aggressive, as I have had happen. Therefore sometimes the only way to keep everyone safe in that metal tube at 30,000 feet is to stop serving alcohol full-stop.
Hoever, as you experienced, the crew can use their discretion, as I have done in the past, and secretly serve people who have not been causing any trouble and have maybe only had one or two drinks.
Sadly in this day and age, air-rage and abusive and aggressive behaviour on board is becoming more and more common. I had a restraint on my BGI a few months ago, and my friend had one on her vegas the week after.
People dont realise that at altitude one drink is equal to two and they think it's clever to down as many beers as possible.
I hope this gives some perspective into the problems we as crew face when it comes to having to close the drinks bars.
That said, I'm glad you enjoyed your flight, and I hope you have a fantastic time in vegas - put everything on black lol!

Virginboy747

We often forget how charged some of these flights can be. I was reading today of a sitiation that took place not on a VS flight, but on a P&O Cruise

It of course 'is always someone else' that has had too much to drink[:I][:w]

Thanks for putting this all into perspective

buns

Thanks Buns, hope to have you on one of my MCOs soon!

Thanks for the great TR![y]

Enjoy Vegas!

Great TR, and good to hear that you had a great flight too.

Virginboy747 - We often forget how difficult it can be with so many people, thanks for the insight.

DMB

A great TR and a very interesting read - I last did the LV run in March and it sounds like your trip was far better than mine! (although staying at the Bellagio was VERY nice and won me some serious points with Mrs SBG)

VB747 - thanks for the additional info as it really is good to see the crew's standpoint in this.

Cheers

Tony

For those of you considering Vegas right now, I used Priceline and bid $55 for a 5 star room. They came back with $88 - which turned out to be at the Venetian - call me crazy but $88 a night at the Venetian is a great deal.

Great TR really enjoyed it well written, also virginboy747 thanks for the insight i would hate to be onboard with a bunch of drunk low lifes getting loud and aggresive.

cheers

alex

good TR,we also had to wait at Vegas for our luggage which come of last!