Wamos VS15 & VS16

"Due to flights being suspended from Gatwick today and to avoid causing you any disruption at this important time of year, we’re making some changes to our operation and your flight will now be operated by Wamos. You will notice some differences from our normal on-board product and service today."

Sorry to make this all about me... I booked my trip for Monday via Expedia (eBookers)... If this disruption continues and they enlist Wamos's help, do I have the right to cancel my whole trip and get a full refund? My travel insurance is free via Natwest. Any better ones out there I can sign up to now, or would that be breaking some insurance law? I'm slightly concerned about the knock-on effect of this whilst it's still not sorted and sightings are still being reported.

Probably not as when you purchased trip you would have agreed in the terms and conditions that there could be oporational changes, aircraft swap etc.
What cabin are you booked in and when are you travelling?
I know Vamos have an ex Air New Zealand 747 so if your in upper then nothing much will be different (as same style seats) and if your in premium you might even get upgraded to one of thoese seats as that 747 have a more premium configuration.

UC on the 24th. Reviews of their service don’t seem pretty. I’m not that concerned but when you do see the disruption and a carrier swap on your route, it’s a little unnerving, and was asking out of interest rather than panic.

We’re only away for three nights and not too bothered by the trip, so I’d prefer to cancel if not on VS metal and crew.

I’m sure everything will be fine by Monday. Just wish I booked direct with VS for better reroute options should, for whatever reason, I need them. Expedia were effectively chucking the hotel in for free, so it was hard to say no.

If you booked with an OTA you are bound by their T&Cs and it is them you must deal with, not VS.

And I doubt there is any insurer who’d pay up for a simple change of operating airline, why would they?

Of course if the drone disruption is still ongoing on Monday things will be different and you’d likely be allowed to cancel for a full refund (definitely if you’d booked direct with VS, but again you’re subject to the OTA’s T&Cs and would have to go through them).

[mitchja]

VS have issued a full refund waiver for all flights from/to LGW but only for yesterday or today i.e. Dec 20th - Dec 21st.

There’s also the option to rebook travel dates free of charge for anyone departing/arriving LGW today, but that flight has to be taken before Jan 5th 2019.

No other dates included at this point.

The online reviews of Wamos make "interesting" reading but all seem to have a fairly common theme along the lines of "terrible / rubbish / avoid at all costs". I'm guessing Virgin had already enlisted the services of Wamos in advance as possible contingency against the pilot strike action & they just got lucky with the timing of the Gatwick chaos.

As to the Wamos 747 - the pictures I have seen online of it show a Business Class procust upstairs with vast legroom, but it is certainly not the same seat Upper Class uses (or has ever used) - the seating config upstairs in the pics I found was 2-2 in Business Class.

Edit: Here's the link for the review I read of Wamos... https://thepointsguy.com/reviews/wamos- ... ss-review/

That looks dire! Hopefully VS might spec up the catering?

Poor Premium pax though, 40+ Premium seats on a VS 747 versus none on that!

VS 15 last night was shown as being operated several hours late by Ruby Tuesday. VS28 also operated by Ruby Tuesday is shown as landing at Gatwick about 1.45 today. Would VS allow non VS crews to operate their aircraft?

It's just taken off from LHR as VS1015. Poor sods. The VS16 is then departing at 1am local and flying into MAN. Ground transportation for passengers down to Gatwick. That would imply it might be being used on a couple of Manchester routes?

It's EC-KXN.

A Hifly A330-300 reg 9H-AGU has just positioned from Beja, Portugal to LHR under a VS callsign VS868...

With the strike off, are there any other reasons they need these additional planes in the fleet at the moment?

A Hifly A330-300 reg 9H-AGU has just positioned from Beja, Portugal to LHR under a VS callsign VS868...

A second HiFly aircraft - an A340 reg 9H-FOX operating as VS882 is currently holding for LHR. It would be interesting to know what these planes are for, especially given they're heading to LHR not LGW.

Is it possible that VS organised these extra aircraft yesterday as a back up, in case the LGW disruption continued into the weekend? Seeing as they’re positioning to LHR maybe the plan was to operate the LGW flights from there.

It’ll be interesting to see where they head off to next.

Page has been updated and shows the routes for alternative non VS aircraft as Seattle and Orlando

https://www.virginatlantic.com/gb/en/tr ... osure.html

Thanks for posting MoJoJo. We're on the affected VS27 on Monday. No communication from VS yet.

I'm in conversation with eBookers since your post trying to change to something more appropriate.

LHR -> ATL -> MCO

On the VS103.

TBH, happier with that than LGW & the original 747!

LHR -> ATL -> MCO

On the VS103.

TBH, happier with that than LGW & the original 747!

Well done. LGW just closed again after a potential drone sighting

That message has now been taken down from the VS site. Seat maps still showing Wamos. I prefer the whole LHR experience, and I gather we'll get lounge access at ATL? Are there multiple, and if so, what does anyone recommend?

Thanks for all your help with this. Pays off to be a few hours ahead of the game.

Currently sat in delta lounge at MCO awaiting VS28 home which is delayed, operated by Wamos, cant say I'm.looking forward to their version of upper class. I feel a complaint coming on!

[mitchja]

Good luck!!!

I believe today's VS27 & VS28 *should* be the last Wamos 744 flights.

I think the Wamos wet lease may have got VS out of a pickle yesterday though as G-VBIG went tech on her way to LAS and had to turn round and go back to LGW. G-VXLG replaced that A/C which left LGW about 5 hours later.

Also this morning's inbound VS106 flight from SEA *should* be the last Hi Fly A333 flight as well.

How far in advance do you think they "booked" these Wamos charters as they seemed very prepared for this Gatwick shutdown and G-VBIG returning to Gatwick yesterday?

I imagine they were booked in anticipation of the threatened pilots’ strike, which never happened.

Yeah it's almost as if they knew that Gatwick would be shut......

Having searched twitter the last few days, I cannot describe how happier we are to be on the VS103. We’re making extremely quick time across the Atlantic. The 103 is Atlanta.

A very merry Christmas to all v-flyers from the UC bar. Rounding off the year with an empty UC cabin, a superb selection of crew members and a very empty CH this morning.

We’re booked on the 16:55 and I’d like to get on the 14:55 to Orlando. I’ve messsgaed Delta and they’ve said I need to contact VS (it was all booked via Expedia with complications... see above), is that really the case or do you think DL could do something when we land?

In the hope people are reading my rambles on Christmas Eve...

1. What lounge?
2. What bar in Atlanta? We’ll go there for an hour if we can’t get an earlier flight.

Merry Christmas all.

[mitchja]

Enjoy the rest of your trip

Just speak to a DL agent at ATL or in the Sky Club lounges at ATL - they should be able to move you onto an easier flight if there's availability. DL have done this before with me. They have even done it at check-in without me asking one time I was flying from BOS to JFK.

I'll be trying the same thing next week as I'm flying to FLL via ATL and could do with catching one of the earlier DL flights to FLL.

They are usually pretty good at dealing with stuff like this even if it's booked via VS.

Lounge wise at ATL - you can use any of the DL SkyClub lounges at ATL. There is one is every concourse at ATL. The one in the International concourse is the best - which I believe you can use if you want to.

Just be aware though that DL have an annoying habit of changing your departure gate / concourse at ATL; often last minute as well so keep your eye on the departure screens, though it very easy and reasonable quick to change concourses using the plane-train.