V-Flyer

The return flight from the 9th June. Had a great weekend in Boston but it was time to leave.

Headed to Logan about 4pm by taxi, easy journey through and was at Logan by 4:15. Had checked in the evening before, and was given the option for the Y seats upstairs, so thought I'd give them a go and see what it was like (never travelled in the bubble before.)

Check in desks were completely empty, can't say the same for the BA desks, the queues were out of the barriers to the door. Check in was a breeze, we had paid for extra baggage at online check in, and this was dealt with without issue. Away from the desk, boarding cards in hand in less than 5 minutes.

Headed off to security, which was very busy, with long queues. I seemed to get lucky as I was directed into the special assistance queue as there was no one in it, the other members of my party were not so lucky. Waited for an age at the screening point though, with some man complaining about having to take off his belt.

Flight was on time, terminal very busy as there were a couple of fights that had been delayed. Tried to get something to eat at the pub place down near the 8 gates, had to wait half an hour for the table, and the service was diabolical. Won't go into that though.

Checked this wonderful site and saw today's plan was G-VROC, so thats another to be confirmed to have the Y upstairs. Boarding called just about on time, priority first, and seemed very well organised. The upstairs Y seats were called just after the PE, and there was no mad rush to the plane.

Friendly crew directed us upstairs. Our party of 3 had got 76 HJ&K, the second row back of the Y section. Initial thoughts were the window seat had lots of room to the side, with a small shelf, but windows too far away for leaning onto. The aisle seat that I was sitting in, was very tight for space on the aisle. There seemed to be a little more legroom than on the 346 on the way out.

There was a lot of confusion for the crew when it was time for the safely video. The first row of Y passengers had already been told the IFE was not working for these seats, and they would be supplied the DVD players, but it also came to light there were no monitors to view the safety video, so they had to quickly do a manual demo in the short time before take off. It was also noted that these seats also didn't have any tray tables, so dinner would have to be eaten on their laps! The crew rallied round well and got the demo done quickly, but very professionally.

Push-back on time, and a very short run to what I assume was 15R, couple of minutes then away, estimated flight time of 5:45.

Dinner served not long after we had got away, no separate drinks run. Didn't have any dinner. I was asked if I wanted a tray anyway, but I declined. Tea/Coffee just after dinner, and trays cleared pretty quickly.

I went down to the galley later for a drink, and stopped for a chat with the crew, who were very friendly. Had a quick chat about the Y upstairs, which obviously they didn't like, and how they had many complaints for the J passengers about not being off first. They also mentioned the lack of space between the rows, and found it difficult to get the cart down, without bumping people, which I can certainly confirm. Chatted about a few other things too, but was certainly made to feel welcome.

Very uneventful flight, a little light turbulence, nothing very interesting though. A snack was served shortly before landing, cinnamon whirl (or a muffin top) which was actually quite good. This is where the three crew members certainly worked hard, sorting out the Y pax, and also running about seeing to the J pax as well. Landed into a dull Heathrow (09L) at 7:20. A long taxi round to one of the gates on the far side.

Off pretty quick (thanks to being upstairs) down to a long walk to a very busy immigration queue. (For once I seemed to choose the right line for speed). Bags took about 20 mins, but the priority tagged bags were off first by the time we got there)

Overall, a very good experience in all, friendly and helpful crew (well the 3 that were upstairs) with good service. Quite a contrast to my outbound flight, just emphasising the variance that occurs between crews.

Thanks for the TR

They also mentioned the lack of space between the rows, and found it difficult to get the cart down, without bumping people, which I can certainly confirm.

That is certainly very interesting - worth remembering

Once again, you highlight the Achilles Heel of VS - Consistency

Thanks once again

buns

It certainly was very tight, but if they had moved the seats over by the window a little, the curvature of the ceiling would interfere with the heads of the taller passengers. Catch 22 really.

Also to note, they were the older style Y seats, and the ones with the handset in the armrest, not the back of the seat infront.

The Crew did also say the new PE seats were not certified for upstairs as yet.

Thank you for the great TR.

Interesting read - I fly in 76H today to BOS...

Thanks for the TR - the new config seems unpopular with all then. I was chatting at check in yesterday and the staff there too were aware that people no longer want to sit upstairs in UC, and one commented that VS isnlooking to reconvert!

Oh was that a one off with Y in the bubble or has VS012 all changed ? I fly back on the 23rd July ?

SNOMO wrote:Oh was that a one off with Y in the bubble or has VS012 all changed ? I fly back on the 23rd July ?

The crew said to me that all LHR 747's had now been converted.