More style than substance.
Written: Apr 12 '02
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Product Rating:
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Pros: The "I fly with Virgin" image. New aircraft.
Cons: Cramped seating, lacklustre cabin crew, entertainment systems don't work.
The Bottom Line: Good- but not that good. Don't believe all the blurb about Virgin. They really are nothing special.
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| polevs's Full Review: Virgin Atlantic |
I had the opportunity to buy 2 return tickets from Heathrow to Los Angeles for 40.00 GBP plus tax with Virgin Atlantic so, naturally, I snapped them up. I was greatly looking forward to flying with them as their reputation is so good.
The check-in, especially with the new security measures was smooth and swift, aided by the friendly and more-than-helpful staff at Heathrow. We were upgraded to Premium Economy as the flight was overbooked. This proved to be the most disappointing of all. The seats appeared no more roomier than many other airlines economy class which I have flown with. Other than a glass of sparkling wine on boarding the in-flight service was the same as economy.
Which leads to the food. I can understand that there is no need for 2 hot meals to be served on a 12 hour flight but to be given a greasy, chewy, salty sausage roll and an orange juice as a snack was just insulting. This being in Premium Economy where the usual return price LHR-LAX-LHR is approximately 1500.00GBP. The main meal was also disappointing in size but at least edible.
The much vaunted in-flight entertainment system with Virgin is excellent. When it works. It never ceases to amaze me how airlines spend millions of pounds on these systems only to fail to maintain them properly, rendering them useless. The paddles don't work, the screens won't stay in position and the sound does not come through both headphones. To be fair however, Virgin are not the only airline with this problem. It seems a fact of life that whenever I fly long haul I will have to take a good novel, no matter how good the alleged in-flight service is.
The return flight in economy class was quite pleasant - providing I put kept my feet in the aisle. I could not put them anywhere else. Legroom in Virgin economy is 31 inches -not much more than in a UK charter flight. This may be acceptable for a 3 hour hop in Europe but not for a 12 hour transatlantic journey to the States. My in-flight entertainment system did work however - at last.
The cabin crew were extremely efficient but so cold. Very little conversation was offered by them in flight, other than the the usual "chicken or fish" and "would you like ice in that". Being friendly does not cost anything.
Other than these minor hiccups, both flights were pretty average. This being the main problem. However much Virgin blow their own trumpet about the standard of service and cache of flying with them, they are really not that different to any one else. Compared to some of the far east airlines they seem mediocre at most. If they are planning to expand the network to Australia and the far east, Virgin have some serious work to do. In a direct comparison with Singapore Airlines or or Emirates for example, they will lose hands down. It is such a pity as it can take advantage of the ailing leviathan BA so easily at the moment. Let Virgin make itself into Britains real "British Airway", and give us an Airline to be proud of.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
polevs
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Reviews written: 4
Trusted by: 2 members
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