Equipment swap

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pblackie

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I'm booked on the 1300 Mel - Per flight, booked myself business class on an A330. 0645 this morning I got a call informing me that the aircraft had been swapped to a 737 - but don't worry you are still flying business class. I don't really consider the 737 business offering in the same league as the A330 not Happy Virgin!
 
I'm booked on the 1300 Mel - Per flight, booked myself business class on an A330. 0645 this morning I got a call informing me that the aircraft had been swapped to a 737 - but don't worry you are still flying business class. I don't really consider the 737 business offering in the same league as the A330 not Happy Virgin!

Are you able to move flights to a later/earlier flight to be on the 330?
 
I could move to the 1730 but that would mean wasting my afternoon and evening
 
They have sometimes offered a connection (via SYD or MEL). Can be worth asking for that option.
 
I looked at re-routing but again it would mean arriving in PER at approx 2100 so a wate of the evening. There's a lot of pi**ed off people onboard and at least 3 have walked off the plane saying they would book another flight. Really not good virgin. Wonder if the virgin rep might want to comment
 
I looked at re-routing but again it would mean arriving in PER at approx 2100 so a wate of the evening. There's a lot of pi**ed off people onboard and at least 3 have walked off the plane saying they would book another flight. Really not good virgin. Wonder if the virgin rep might want to comment

I guess there are times where this is unavoidable which is a pity.
 
This is why they should not have such a HUGE difference in product offering. J seats should be the same in both (Or of equivalent standard). Y seats, not so much, but when charging $1500+ for a seat, they really need to offer the same product on all flights
 
But the business seats on the 738s and the domestic 332s are very similar on QF.
 
QF have done this to me for a SYD - BNE flight.
$80 change fee? No thanks.
Also a 330 to become a 737.

There should be no change fee for J (except fare difference). As MH-fan said, the 332 will most likely have the same/similar J product to the 738, so don't see what the issue is for a 1.5hr flight.

As for the OP, can see why they would be a bit annoyed, but VA seem to have such a gap between the J product offering. I assume no compensation as you still received a J seat and service?

I can only see this becoming an issue for QF in the future as well, with the new 332 suite being introduced as opposed to the 738 on the CBR-PER run, as well as the odd 738 on the BNE/SYD/MEL-PER legs
 
I'm booked on the 1300 Mel - Per flight, booked myself business class on an A330. 0645 this morning I got a call informing me that the aircraft had been swapped to a 737 - but don't worry you are still flying business class. I don't really consider the 737 business offering in the same league as the A330 not Happy Virgin!

They've always moved me to whatever I've wanted at no additional charge.

Last time was February where my PER - MEL flight of PER - MEL - CBR was subbed to a 737. They moved me to via Sydney (fare difference at the time was about $400). I was on the cheapest flexi using a plat upgrade. I even earned the points for the higher fare - not the fare i paid originally.

Maybe just ask. I find many people get nothing because they don't ask.
 
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Yup, not great and I can understand the disappointment.

However, what exactly would you like Virgin to do about it? If they have to swap the aircraft, they have to do it. If they don't just have another spare A330 laying around, what should they do for you that would make it more acceptable? I don't mean to sound unsympathetic, but let's be realistic here. It is a known risk that aircraft will be swapped out.
 
They should be charging less for trans-continental J on the 737 given the product is of lessor quality than that on the A330.

If you have two different versions of the product, charge appropriately for each one.

If you went to gold class cinema and received a chair for instance because the couch seat was broken you would expect to pay a lessor price for the reduced service; same deal with airlines this instance with the 737 and A330 products.
 
They should be charging less for trans-continental J on the 737 given the product is of lessor quality than that on the A330.

If you have two different versions of the product, charge appropriately for each one.

If you went to gold class cinema and received a chair for instance because the couch seat was broken you would expect to pay a lessor price for the reduced service; same deal with airlines this instance with the 737 and A330 products.

Hard product is only one of the factors they use to base their price for flights.
 
A similar comparison flying AC from YVR to YYZ you could get an A319 or a 77W depending on the flight but price is the same, fairly different products in J.
 
A similar comparison flying AC from YVR to YYZ you could get an A319 or a 77W depending on the flight but price is the same, fairly different products in J.
There are many other examples around also.

Air NZ across the ditch is very different depending on a/c type.
 
VA is very active with their marketing though, their campagin of "lie flat coast to coast" has been everywhere.


On my last trip SYD to PER I booked return flexi's and upgraded to J, using two of my comp platinum upgrades.


SYD to PER, aircraft swap to a 737 and on the way back, found myself on the old A330, where more things don't work that do work (from a passenger perspective / interaction).


This was dissapointing, kept reminding myself that I had only paid for an economy seat, don't get to mad, plenty of others in the cabin were not impressed and did not hold back when expressing their views to the cabin crew.


Instead of "lie flat coast to coast", I felt "lied to coast to coast".


VA just don't have the fleet like QF has and can't switch aircraft without negatively impacting customers inflight experience. They also don't have the same number of services scheduled daily, so when an aircraft change takes place, option is not there to wait another two hours and get on the next flight (coast to coast).


Out of my last two return trips SYD to PER, I have only experienced the new J product (lie flat) once, not a very impressive statistic.


As VA grows, hopefully this will change.


One thing is for sure, VA staff are more customer service focused than QF staff.
 
VA just don't have the fleet like QF has and can't switch aircraft without negatively impacting customers inflight experience. They also don't have the same number of services scheduled daily, so when an aircraft change takes place, option is not there to wait another two hours and get on the next flight (coast to coast).


Out of my last two return trips SYD to PER, I have only experienced the new J product (lie flat) once, not a very impressive statistic.


As VA grows, hopefully this will change.


One thing is for sure, VA staff are more customer service focused than QF staff.

I'm not so sure on your last comment, a little more cheery I would say.

Are they growing in any substantive way at the moment?

I'm certainly getting pretty sick of them, the same same lounge food, the lousy seats and service upfront and their coughpy terminal spaces, they are going nowhere much as far as I can see. If QF flew MEL-OOL I don't think I'd hang around VA for long.
 
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