New Premium Economy/Economy Layout

HL

I take your point about the Xmas parties, but as the meal choice would only be available between seven and three days prior to departure that should be a short enough time for people to remember. As for costs I wasn't advocating more choice it would just help the caterer to know three days before say in UC that they needed say two chicken, ten beef and two veggie. I certainly believe that with current prices UC & PE passengers shouldn't have to go long haul without a meal because their choice is not available as mentioned in several recent trip reports. I remember flying PE to MBJ with Mytravel and being given a choice of ten mains for order three days before the flight. I also fly regularly with Monarch and you can pre- order your meal with them. At least you know if it's not your choice ( I hate curries and spicy food) you can at least take a meal on board. As for not every one being able to access an on line request system, this also applies to OLCI but we have that too.

[honey lamb]

HL

I take your point about the Xmas parties, but as the meal choice would only be available between seven and three days prior to departure that should be a short enough time for people to remember. As for costs I wasn't advocating more choice it would just help the caterer to know three days before say in UC that they needed say two chicken, ten beef and two veggie. I certainly believe that with current prices UC & PE passengers shouldn't have to go long haul without a meal because their choice is not available as mentioned in several recent trip reports. I remember flying PE to MBJ with Mytravel and being given a choice of ten mains for order three days before the flight. I also fly regularly with Monarch and you can pre- order your meal with them. At least you know if it's not your choice ( I hate curries and spicy food) you can at least take a meal on board. As for not every one being able to access an on line request system, this also applies to OLCI but we have that too.

Erm, it wasn't me who said that about Christmas parties, it was tonty. I merely said that people change their minds as I did on board my SQ flight (although I stuck with what I had booked but would have liked to change)

I take your point about only having a limited amount of time to choose but bear in mind that people don't always want to or know they can choose seats so they are just as likely not to choose meals. If they are given choices many will think that they will wait until they get on board. On my last VS flight there were only about five pre-selected seats according to the VS seat map yet there were only about three empty seats. On my upcoming YVR-LHR flight currently only two of us have requested seats but I'll bet that there will more than just the two of us in the cabin.

Remember also that menus appear on VF, some in greater detail than others. I've often decided beforehand what I'm going to have but then decide on board to have something else and I suspect I'm not alone. I'm more likely to decide what I'm NOT going to have than the other way round.

rdbcay I wouldn't worry about your upcoming PE experience. I think you will really enjoy it. If you have never flown PE before then you have nothing to compare it to. I'm guessing that a lot of people on here have travelled PE a fair few times. They remember what is was like and what is like now. I haven't travelled on Virgin for a long time but I am still looking forward to being in PE. I think from reading up the main problem is the look of 747's these days. But before the end of the year they should all be totally refurbished.

Even if you end up on an old plane I think you will still enjoy it. If it is an older plane my advice would be to try and get seats in the bubble.

I have to agree with StarGuy about the leg room as well. It's nowhere near as bad as some are making out.

Star - then you are fortunate. But I can only relate my experiences, and I am beginning to think I am being short changed.

Certainly, excluding the new IFE system (which there is still no guarantee of getting) the service in PE is nowhere near what it used to be.

Indeed, UC is now closer to what PE used to be.

And UC is nowhere near the likes of business on SQ for example.

I am certain you are writing from your perspective however I fundamentally disagree with you about your last two comments. The comment about UC being close to PE is strange, given that PE never looked or felt like UC, and having taken four long haul flights in J on SQ this year, yes they have their pluses, but also their minuses and I would have preferred VS.

rdbcay I wouldn't worry about your upcoming PE experience. I think you will really enjoy it. If you have never flown PE before then you have nothing to compare it to. I'm guessing that a lot of people on here have travelled PE a fair few times. They remember what is was like and what is like now. I haven't travelled on Virgin for a long time but I am still looking forward to being in PE. I think from reading up the main problem is the look of 747's these days. But before the end of the year they should all be totally refurbished.

Even if you end up on an old plane I think you will still enjoy it. If it is an older plane my advice would be to try and get seats in the bubble.

I have to agree with StarGuy about the leg room as well. It's nowhere near as bad as some are making out.

Thanks I Can't wait. I am starting to look at it this way. It's a plane not a hotel so whatever comforts I can get I look forward to. I am particularly looking forward to the wider seats having flown economy so many times on my last trips.

we started in ecom which we flew in for many years and liked,as the children grew up and no longer wanted to holiday with the "dinosaurs" we treated ourselves to PE which we liked and continued flying that class on the LGW routes and loved being up in the bubble,we then travelled UC on the 747 which we also liked.alas last flight back to PE on the airbus and it was awful, cramped and hot,on way out had the 2 windows seats so not to bad way back had 2 of the middle 3 seats, next two flights with Virgin will be UC but after maybe will have to rethink