In February 2012, I flew Virgin PE from Manchester to Las Vegas return. Both flights were in the ‘bubble’ of a 747, pre-refurbishment. On the outward journey in particular the PE product was excellent. Newspapers and magazines were offered and a bottle of water provided. Drinks were offered regularly by the dedicated cabin crew, who came around and asked, as well as being available in the galley, and who always gave 2 of the small soda cans. A full bar service was offered with the main meal; there was an ice cream run and several water/juice runs; a fruit bowl was available to help yourself from; and other snacks were offered during the flight (including hot savoury snacks).
Later in the year I flew BA WTP+ and produced a comparison report between the 2 products, which came down heavily in favour of VS. And for which I got flamed (indeed, effectively accused of lying) by BA fans on another board.
Fast forward to February 2013 and a return flight from Manchester to Orlando. The outward journey was on a 2-class A330. The purple seats were comfortable and the IFE a great improvement – although the people behind us apparently couldn’t understand the concept of ‘touch screen’ and spent the flight prodding and pushing at their screens (ie the back of our seats) which was irritating. There was no amenity kit but we were aware of that cutback and for us it was no great loss. There was one drinks run after take-off. As, for once, DH wasn’t driving on arrival he decided to have a beer but there was only the choice of Heineken or Tiger which is hardly the “wide selection of beers” advertised on Virgin’s website.
Menus were handed out but by the time we were served the choice was curry, take it or leave it. So we both just had the tray without hot meal. The brownie was okay but it wasn’t a patch on the Gu desserts previously offered. Afternoon tea consisted of a small cheese and onion sandwich and small cupcake with tea, coffee or juice. There were several water/juice runs and small packets of Lovehearts were given out as we were about to land. It would seem the fresh fruit has been another victim of the cutbacks. But despite the website stating (admittedly on the economy sample menu), “Ice creams, popcorn or sweets will be served by the crew to all passengers”, we were offered none of these – well, unless the Lovehearts are meant to count as the “movie snack”. I’m fairly sure I’ve seen recent trip reports mention ice cream (or pseudo-ice cream, ie Skinny Cow) but none was provided on our flight – I don’t know if it was offered in economy.
I am no fan of any airline food but having recently read the blurb about the enhanced economy meal service, it seemed to me that they must have improved that at the expense of the PE meal service.
Return flight was upstairs on a refurbished 747. I have read good and bad reports of PE in this new configuration but our experience was unfortunately pretty poor.
First issue was with our carry-on bags. Somehow I’d either missed (or forgotten) that the overhead lockers now won’t take a standard wheeled carry-on. (Which bright spark at VS made that decision?) In fact, my wheeled carry-on is designed as a child’s bag and is considerably smaller than the standard size but it still would not fit in the overhead. Nor would DH’s non-wheeled, not particularly large rucksack. So we had to stash them in the wardrobe at the back of economy. Along with, it seemed, everyone else’s bags from both PE and economy. The overhead lockers were virtually empty but the wardrobe was crammed full – so much so that after we landed one of the cabin crew emptied it out into the galley area to avoid the chaos that could have ensued with everyone trying to dig their own bag out of the wardrobe with very little room for manoeuvre.
Both PE and economy in the bubble were full. The curtains between the 2 sections were loosened after take-off but not drawn. Immediately after take-off a queue of economy passengers formed down the aisle in PE and this continued for some time, including while the cabin crew did the drinks run. We were in the back row of PE so it wasn’t a problem for us but I can see that it would have been irritating for those in the first 2-3 rows. Throughout the flight there seemed to constantly be several people congregating in the exit door space either side of the aircraft which must have been annoying for those sitting in the economy exit row seats. The bulkhead/crew seats behind us provided a buffer so although, being in the aisle seat, I was aware people were there, it wasn’t an issue. Except for one woman who, for reasons unknown, spent an inordinate amount of time standing at the very corner of the left bulkhead, leaning into PE. It was as if she was daring herself to step over an invisible line – she would step into PE briefly and lean as if she was trying to see what people were watching on the IFE a few rows ahead, then step back again. It was really quite strange.
I’m not sure why Virgin go to the trouble of printing breakfast choices on a menu. In reality, a food carton was plonked down in front of us without us being given the option of whether we even wanted it, let alone any choice of what we were getting. They started from the back so it isn’t as if they had run out of one choice. In the event, I got one of the choices and DH the other, and they both looked utterly revolting. There was one water run made during the flight.
When it came to disembarking, any idea of PE priority disappeared completely. There was a PA announcement that the downstairs UC and PE cabins would disembark first, followed by the upstairs cabin. As we were at the back of upstairs PE, we were the first from that cabin to get downstairs, but by then passengers from the main economy cabin were flooding out and, if anything, it was as if we – and, indeed, PE and UC passengers from the front, were being held for them rather than the other way around.
Although our bags did have PE tags on them, any priority for luggage seemed also to have disappeared because we saw what seemed to be several containers worth of economy bags appear before any PE ones arrived. I do, however, accept that Virgin have little control over this and it is more an airport than an airline issue.
Last year I said that I thought BA should re-brand WTP+ as being simply larger seats and extra legroom rather than a premium product. And I’m afraid that given our recent experience, it seems that VS PE has gone the same way. We will continue to fly VS PE and BA WTP+ according to the route we need because both products do provide more physical comfort. But any idea of either of them being a genuinely premium product has now gone, and it will just be an annoyance when I see them advertised as such.
Later in the year I flew BA WTP+ and produced a comparison report between the 2 products, which came down heavily in favour of VS. And for which I got flamed (indeed, effectively accused of lying) by BA fans on another board.
Fast forward to February 2013 and a return flight from Manchester to Orlando. The outward journey was on a 2-class A330. The purple seats were comfortable and the IFE a great improvement – although the people behind us apparently couldn’t understand the concept of ‘touch screen’ and spent the flight prodding and pushing at their screens (ie the back of our seats) which was irritating. There was no amenity kit but we were aware of that cutback and for us it was no great loss. There was one drinks run after take-off. As, for once, DH wasn’t driving on arrival he decided to have a beer but there was only the choice of Heineken or Tiger which is hardly the “wide selection of beers” advertised on Virgin’s website.
Menus were handed out but by the time we were served the choice was curry, take it or leave it. So we both just had the tray without hot meal. The brownie was okay but it wasn’t a patch on the Gu desserts previously offered. Afternoon tea consisted of a small cheese and onion sandwich and small cupcake with tea, coffee or juice. There were several water/juice runs and small packets of Lovehearts were given out as we were about to land. It would seem the fresh fruit has been another victim of the cutbacks. But despite the website stating (admittedly on the economy sample menu), “Ice creams, popcorn or sweets will be served by the crew to all passengers”, we were offered none of these – well, unless the Lovehearts are meant to count as the “movie snack”. I’m fairly sure I’ve seen recent trip reports mention ice cream (or pseudo-ice cream, ie Skinny Cow) but none was provided on our flight – I don’t know if it was offered in economy.
I am no fan of any airline food but having recently read the blurb about the enhanced economy meal service, it seemed to me that they must have improved that at the expense of the PE meal service.
Return flight was upstairs on a refurbished 747. I have read good and bad reports of PE in this new configuration but our experience was unfortunately pretty poor.
First issue was with our carry-on bags. Somehow I’d either missed (or forgotten) that the overhead lockers now won’t take a standard wheeled carry-on. (Which bright spark at VS made that decision?) In fact, my wheeled carry-on is designed as a child’s bag and is considerably smaller than the standard size but it still would not fit in the overhead. Nor would DH’s non-wheeled, not particularly large rucksack. So we had to stash them in the wardrobe at the back of economy. Along with, it seemed, everyone else’s bags from both PE and economy. The overhead lockers were virtually empty but the wardrobe was crammed full – so much so that after we landed one of the cabin crew emptied it out into the galley area to avoid the chaos that could have ensued with everyone trying to dig their own bag out of the wardrobe with very little room for manoeuvre.
Both PE and economy in the bubble were full. The curtains between the 2 sections were loosened after take-off but not drawn. Immediately after take-off a queue of economy passengers formed down the aisle in PE and this continued for some time, including while the cabin crew did the drinks run. We were in the back row of PE so it wasn’t a problem for us but I can see that it would have been irritating for those in the first 2-3 rows. Throughout the flight there seemed to constantly be several people congregating in the exit door space either side of the aircraft which must have been annoying for those sitting in the economy exit row seats. The bulkhead/crew seats behind us provided a buffer so although, being in the aisle seat, I was aware people were there, it wasn’t an issue. Except for one woman who, for reasons unknown, spent an inordinate amount of time standing at the very corner of the left bulkhead, leaning into PE. It was as if she was daring herself to step over an invisible line – she would step into PE briefly and lean as if she was trying to see what people were watching on the IFE a few rows ahead, then step back again. It was really quite strange.
I’m not sure why Virgin go to the trouble of printing breakfast choices on a menu. In reality, a food carton was plonked down in front of us without us being given the option of whether we even wanted it, let alone any choice of what we were getting. They started from the back so it isn’t as if they had run out of one choice. In the event, I got one of the choices and DH the other, and they both looked utterly revolting. There was one water run made during the flight.
When it came to disembarking, any idea of PE priority disappeared completely. There was a PA announcement that the downstairs UC and PE cabins would disembark first, followed by the upstairs cabin. As we were at the back of upstairs PE, we were the first from that cabin to get downstairs, but by then passengers from the main economy cabin were flooding out and, if anything, it was as if we – and, indeed, PE and UC passengers from the front, were being held for them rather than the other way around.
Although our bags did have PE tags on them, any priority for luggage seemed also to have disappeared because we saw what seemed to be several containers worth of economy bags appear before any PE ones arrived. I do, however, accept that Virgin have little control over this and it is more an airport than an airline issue.
Last year I said that I thought BA should re-brand WTP+ as being simply larger seats and extra legroom rather than a premium product. And I’m afraid that given our recent experience, it seems that VS PE has gone the same way. We will continue to fly VS PE and BA WTP+ according to the route we need because both products do provide more physical comfort. But any idea of either of them being a genuinely premium product has now gone, and it will just be an annoyance when I see them advertised as such.
hee hee
