Product removal/Cut backs

I thought the ear plugs had gone in economy. Shows the last time I opened one then. Agree with Neil apart from The pen the kit was useless anyway.

Anyone remember when the bag was big enough to be reused as a swimming kit bag. The lip balm. The smints. The virgin v wet wipe. The post cards and tissues. The toothbrush with the little ducky..... all gone. Sign of the times I suppose.

Think it was Walt Disney that said the current era has never been the golden era.

Both my kids used US Air to visit recently and raved about them .They also both got pretty good upgrade offers at check in, which if you could guarantee getting every time would definitely make them worth a look.

But if you could guarantee good upgrade offers no-one would ever book the premium cabins at the price which gives the airline the necessary yields, which leads to reduced profit, cutbacks in service...

I think it's a good call on the kits, as Neil says no-one ever seems to use them.

I am surprised by all these comments!
Although relatively new to Virgin, 2 years, I am an old hand at this flying lark. Everyone get a grip all they (airlines) do is try to get you from a - b in safety whilst extracting as much from your wallet as possible. The are in what is called the AIRLINE BUSINESS !
Unless they can make money they will fold.
Glossy advertising and slick web sites are the nectar to entice us in, and once trapped we are putty in their hands, desperate to maintain ff status and collect sufficient miles for the next "free" flight.
Been there, done that, once enjoyed good service on Braniff and Eastern in the good old days when taxes, sorry environmental fees, and fuel costs were less of an issue. They couldn't survive so there must be a bit of sympathy with Virgin for making us suffer sacrifices to ensure that they continue?
One upon a time Virgin Atlantic were able to be different and stand out from the crowd, now the product is getting a bit jaded, the staff dissolutioned, corners cut but ----- we still come back for more!

Hi everyone, first post so hang in there with me. I've been a virgin customer for 10 years, first flight to JFK for my 30th, before and after I've flown with the usual crowd as well as keeping an allegence to Virgin Atlantic where possible . I think we have all seen first hand the economic pressure that has been put on business however virgin ( and other operators) use fuel which is taxed to the hilt, they are subjected to the huge taxes that our own government place on them for flying in and out of our shores coupled with the airport charges this makes a massive challenge for any organisation even one as established as Virgin. Ive flown several times to las Vegas with BMI, BA and Virgin, from London and Manchester, if at all possible ill go with Virgin, not for it's frilly add ons such as amenity kits and blankets, there all great and add to the experience don't get me wrong but I fall into the loyalty category of people who love Virgins staff and brand, it's British (well half) and I like its operation from vroom or lounge to the smile and banter from its flight crew. I am looking forward to flying in an upgraded 747 from man-las in December but if I get the runt of the litter (is it vtop) I won't be too upset, I'll be no one again in march, and if anyone needs an aminity kit on the way home I'll give you mine from the outbound, let's face it there not up to much and plugging your ears and covering your eyes only means youll miss the drinks trolly.......
John

Looks like I will be going back to Thomsons premium for my next trip to Mexico , especially since they will have the Dreamliner by then ,
No shortage of drinks , blankets or amenity kits with Thomsons plus a customer service team that actually offer customer service( don't get me started on the saga with virgin holidays so called ' customer support' this week)

But don't you pay for those drinks?
Must say VS do run the risk of losing yet more B&S pax by over promising and not delivering... Hate to think how much the likes if Thompsons have benefited from the shoddy planes and delays in refits... These bits although minor do hint at the way forward especially the sleath " drinks policy"..

The drinks are free and unlimited ( unless you are obviously becoming inebriated)throughout the flight in the Thomsons premium cabin

I think the point is that Virgin continue to advertise themselves as slick and a top of the range form of transportation and with all the cutbacks , crappy amenity kits etc and penny pinching they are anything but.

I don't believe anyone has mentioned it elsewhere on the forums, but the sushi sampler that you could get on the long black dish in the Clubhouse was removed around the beginning of September.

I think the point is that Virgin continue to advertise themselves as slick and a top of the range form of transportation and with all the cutbacks , crappy amenity kits etc and penny pinching they are anything but.

That's want VS are shooting themselves in the foot with.... Over hype, pulling these little bits in round terms, no big deal. But so soon after promoting them.....oh dear.

I think the point is that Virgin continue to advertise themselves as slick and a top of the range form of transportation and with all the cutbacks , crappy amenity kits etc and penny pinching they are anything but.

Spot on. Add in the seat map fiasco and they really are leading the rwce to the bottom at the moment. Flown with them for 10 years and next year I will look at BA.

While we are bemoaning the cuts in Virgin's service, let's face it: people book on price and on timings.

Ask someone who isn't a V Flyer which airline they flew with last and chances are they won't remember.

My friend at work was upgraded to UC on her last Virgin flight. This time she's flying BA 'because they were cheaper'.

Virgin could announce free champagne for every economy passenger and it would not matter a jot.

I think the main issue affecting Virgin however is that BA have woken up.

Hi everyone, first post so hang in there with me. I've been a virgin customer for 10 years, first flight to JFK for my 30th, before and after I've flown with the usual crowd as well as keeping an allegence to Virgin Atlantic where possible . I think we have all seen first hand the economic pressure that has been put on business however virgin ( and other operators) use fuel which is taxed to the hilt, they are subjected to the huge taxes that our own government place on them for flying in and out of our shores coupled with the airport charges this makes a massive challenge for any organisation even one as established as Virgin. Ive flown several times to las Vegas with BMI, BA and Virgin, from London and Manchester, if at all possible ill go with Virgin, not for it's frilly add ons such as amenity kits and blankets, there all great and add to the experience don't get me wrong but I fall into the loyalty category of people who love Virgins staff and brand, it's British (well half) and I like its operation from vroom or lounge to the smile and banter from its flight crew. I am looking forward to flying in an upgraded 747 from man-las in December but if I get the runt of the litter (is it vtop) I won't be too upset, I'll be no one again in march, and if anyone needs an aminity kit on the way home I'll give you mine from the outbound, let's face it there not up to much and plugging your ears and covering your eyes only means youll miss the drinks trolly.......
John

What tax? VS (and BA) just pass APD (and other airport taxes) on to the customer as a part of the ticket price. There's also no VAT on air tickets.

Also, aviation fuel is not taxed in any way by the UK government.

I think the point is that Virgin continue to advertise themselves as slick and a top of the range form of transportation and with all the cutbacks , crappy amenity kits etc and penny pinching they are anything but.

Advertising is one thing. Talk Talk advertise themselves as slick and efficient. Yet they are the most complained about service provider.

Ryanair, the worlds most hated airline (!) make money hand over fist. Frills, as Virgin are finding out, aren't enough.

Been flying VS since 1992 and have watched there slow decline they are not the company they used to be gone are the frills used to look forward to the flight now they just get you to A-B. Flew Emirates this year what a difference plenty of drinks and loads of leg room on A380 and best food ever great service, come on Virgin catch back up or you loose out and get left behind.

Quite surprised by the reaction here. To be honest, none of these cuts really bothers me at all. I bet I am not alone in having such a large stack of unopened amenity kits from day flights. And frankly I couldn't care less whether a sleep suit comes in a cloth bag or a plastic cover!

The only slight regret I have is the PE ice-cream downgrade. I was shocked last month to discover how much the PE meal service had been trimmed down, and this seems like a further step in the wrong direction.

I think the main issue affecting Virgin however is that BA have woken up.

^ agree with this. I find myself seriously considering BA each time I fly now. The route and alliance advantages they have are increasingly attractive. The Amex 241 is better than any VS equivalent. If VS let the excellent ground-product at LHR slip, then the scales will be even more evenly balanced.

I agree with most of the comments but I do think if virgin are not careful they will start to loose the leisure customers to the likes of Thomson. Not everyone is lucky enough to fly regularly like some of us on here, and its the little extras that make the experience.
I feel that the level offered by virgin of late has declined and that the value compared to BA is not as good. For me it is now only the FC that really keeps us flying virgin..lets hope that they realise there mistakes before a great airline becomes one of the norm out there

Do you remember a week or so ago, I did like for like approx with Thomsons to Florida premium/Virgin premium. Well i did my usuall taylor made option with Thomson and it comes out £1000 approx cheaper. Sorry Virgin you will loose me and mine this time. v( . You have lost the customer service plot. !

We're more leisure customers, generally flying once maybe twice a year. At the moment we always choose to fly VS where possible as they are my airline of choice, but with all these small changes it is making me consider other airlines in the future.

I'll miss a blanket on a day flight as I'm always cold when I fly. I'm probably the only person flying to the Caribbean in Ugg boots

As an infrequent flyer, these changes matter little to me. I've never had a flight where blankets and amenity are given out, not even earphones to watch the tv's are usually free on short haul Thomson/thomas cook flights, so to me, not something I'll miss (as I'm flying PE, at least my mrs will still get a blanket when we fly out). The ice cream change is hardly earth shattering
As long as we get the pre flight drink, my mrs get the chance to have an after dinner Baileys (her absolute favourite), the IFE doesn't play up too much (I think I can squeeze in about 5 films on the way to Cancun lol)and we can get cokes etc if we ask for them, then I'll be more than happy. 1st time on a 747, so I imagine I'll have a huge smile on my face for the whole flight lol.
We picked Virgin because of Virgin's good reputation and we wanted to make this holiday special and I'm sure they'll come up trumps for us, nothing they've done so far has made me believe overwise, the website/seat request fiasco not withstanding.
I imagine these little changes that I have read about - the lessening of the customer experience, is much more of an annoyance for the more regular and returning customers then to me.

It's really hard for me to imagine anyone getting wound up about an amenity kit. Do people really make that their focus?

That said, I suppose when one is familiar with a service, any devolution of same would be a nuisance and concern. I'm just glad they left four engines on the plane...

[Darren Wheeler]

I'm just glad they left four engines on the plane...

Unless it's a A330... :w

I'm just glad they left four engines on the plane...

Unless it's a A330... :w

Darren, it's just part of the cutbacks don't ya know! They just cut two engines off

I can't seem to say anything right on here!

I can't seem to say anything right on here!

In fairness Hagatha, their fleet is still 4 engine dominant!

Thanks!