This is a Trip Report from the Economy cabin
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A long time lurker here, I thought that I would post my first trip report.
Fortunately a meeting postponed my original flight back to Washington a few days, which meant that I got to fly on the Dreamliner which went into operation on the IAD route a couple of days previously.
I had called Virgin a couple of days before the flight to find out about upgrades; there was plenty of room on the flight in Premium and Upper, but I thought that it would be best to save the miles for a night flight, and also avoid having to pay the hefty change in tax. It would be fantastic if VS would allow you to exchange miles for lounge passes (or extra legroom/exit seats...).
The checkin area at LHR was almost deserted and quite eerie; there was none of the usual hustle and bustle. I was pointed to a checkin agent at the bag drop, having checked-in online already. She was very cordial and sent me on my way, ignoring the slight excess weight on my bag (I have yet to master the put-the-foot-under-the-bag-on-the scale trick which by brother swears by). Similarly, the security area was empty so it was straight through and all the agents, it must be said, were very positive.
The flight was called at just after 10:10 at gate 22, right at the end of the concourse. Today we would be flying on G-VNEW, as opposed to G-VAAH (which would have been even cooler given that it was a week old).
After sitting down for about half an hour at the gate, we were finally called to board, in a fairly orderly fashion. Once onboard, we were very warmly greeted by the crew who were extremely welcoming and smily. Fortunately, a taste of things to come. It is always nice as well when the crew standing in the aisles acknowledge you rather than standing there sulking/ignoring you - today they were really on form.
The first impressions of the Dreamliner are wonderful: it is extremely airy and bright. The windows - obviously - are enormous and the dimming function is rather cool (it is interesting how they go to black when 'shutting' them as opposed to white). The overhead lockers being curved up make it feel more spacious. And the seats in economy are infinitely more comfortable than on the A330 (I notice that there are much fewer extra legroom seats, too).
With the doors shut, the FSM announced that there were 96 passengers onboard and 10 crew, with 2 pilots. An extremely light load - indicative of most flights I have taken recently to/from Washington - which is great for us passengers, but can't be doing a lot of good for VS (for what it is worth I have heard that BA is struggling to fill its A380s to IAD). The front section of economy was blocked off for weight and balance reasons, but we were allowed to move anywhere after the seat belt sign had been turned off.
After take off the crew swung into action. It is here that I would like to talk about the exemplary team working in the economy cabin. The gentleman working on my side exemplified everything that a top-notch crew member should be like: engaging, personable, ceaselessly smiling and nothing was too much. I rave about Virgin crew, but this chap was undoubtedly one of the best and I have already written to Virgin HQ about him. The rest of the (male-dominated) team seemed excellent, too, and were extremely good at representing the best of Virgin. The FSM, though, was barely to be seen. For most of them it was their first flight on the Dreamliner and they seemed to like it (not least as there is a crew rest unlike the A330); it is well designed, as the huge galley is at the back and the loos are in the middle.
Entertainment, as always, was very good. Huge choice, and interesting to note that you turn the reading light on/off (and call the crew) on the TV screen. The music, though, didn't seem to be working. And given that it is touch screen, obviously the choice for games is rather limited (controllers being more conducive to games).
Virgin is stepping up its game with the food. The beef bourginon was yummy (albeit very, very small) with the pasta salad and standard gu pudding. I love the snack boxes which have lots of yummy things such as the rocky road bar and Tyrrels crisps and mints (sugar overload!). And of course the mini Fabs are rather welcome.
The crew did dim all the windows after the meal service and the space-ship like mood lights were initiated (which I have to say aren't very natural/relaxing in my opinion). I am not sure why they did this given it was a day flight, but it was nice to be able to stretch out (I had a whole row to myself, as I moved to the front of economy after take off, and exit seats were fair game to move into with no charge...) and get forty winks.
After 7 hours and 50 minutes, we came into land and were in the immigration hall before the BA A380 which landed shortly before ours (literally a minute or two). Miraculously, I was through passport control in under 10 minutes, and my bag was one of the first out (which NEVER normally happens to me!).
So: all in all, Virgin on tip-top form as always. The Dreamliner was a treat and a very smooth ride (it is remarkably quiet and the air quality really does feel better), the crew were outstanding, food good, and the light load was a blessing. I do wonder why, though, the Dreamliner is only temporarily on the IAD route...it seems to be reverting back to the A330 in May.
Thank you for reading.
