Lessons from flying Virgin America in the USA

[Rdarby]

Travelling in the USA, and am Platinum. So I tend to expect at least my standard isle seat. Not here flying Virgin America. Seems they select seats weeks in advance online so you get what you get. And you can't change it online, at least I can't, as the website tells you that you need to talk to Australia! And Australia says they have no control over it. So a 7 hour flight in the middle seat reminded me to be humble!

And the flights are full. They have reduced capacity a lot more than we have, and they fill up so you can't rely on any seat selection.

And they only have limited lounges, such as the one at LAX. Don't expect to see a lounge in most airports.

And if they offer you an upgrade, don't assume it is free. It may cost hundreds, so watch out.

And not all seats on their aircraft recline. I haven't worked that one out yet but you may need to ask.

Happy flying!

 

[TomVexille]

Hmmm, I don't see priority seating as a VA status benefit on VX

Virgin America

• Priority Check-in
• Priority Boarding
• Priority Screening
• Priority Baggage
• Lounge Access

 

[drewbles]

Hmmm, I don't see priority seating as a VA status benefit on VX

It's definitely not.

If you fly Premium Economy to the USA and connect on the same ticket with VX, you can select MCS Seats, which are front row economy, or exit row, as part of the deal (providing you book into the right class of course).

Full flights - All carriers are pretty much rammed, it's rare to have a flight with empty seats on AA, DL, UA or VX IMHO.
Limited Lounges - All US carriers have decidedly average lounges, and those that are nice, typically don't have any food offerings (Although basic beers and spirits are complimentary)
Paid for upgrades - Also, a common thing in the USA. If you're going to pay for an upgrade to F, I reckon VX is the best airline to do it on (they even offer on-board paid upgrades in some situations)
Seat Recline - yup, JQ have some aircraft with *no* reclining seats, and it's not at all unusual to see some exit rows not recline for safety requirements.

None of these are a reason not to fly VX IMHO, and they're definitely giving the legacy carriers some push to improve their product. Jet Blue also is very good I believe (with their new F suites going in shortly on long haul domestic routes, it's sure to shake things up again).

My main complaint with VX is the 'disco' atmosphere on boarding; I dislike boarding into a plane with all the blinds closed. I understand keeping them closed if it's stinking hot outside, but they *always* have them closed, and thanks to the FAA not requiring blinds to be up for takeoff and landing, people often just leave them closed, which I am not comfortable with (I want to see outside in the unlikely event of fire or the like, I want to be aware of my surroundings). Of course, other airlines in the USA have the same issue where people just close the shades as they sit down.

 

[notzac]

This thread provides another example of why I prefer DL over VX for domestic connections in the US..