Was this abad virgin experience, do I send feedback?

[medhead]

As the OP said....if he had 3B on his boarding pass this wouldn't even be a topic up for discussion,and the OPs inflight experience would have been the same.

please see the thread topic for the questions that I'm asking. Yes I introduced the character of the other passenger and that was a mistake. But this is not a petulant rant by me. I got off that flight less than happy. I started the thread because I wasn't sure about the validity of that unhappiness or the cause.

Going through the replies perhaps I should have let the other passenger know why I was unhappy and been done with that. Confrontation, always a good look.

I probably should add that whenever I've been on a VA flight this lightly loaded I've always had an empty middle seat.


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[Justinf]

Medhead, if it's any consolation, I am on your side for this one although I do seem to be in the minority.
The passenger had a cancelled QF flight. He rebooked on DJ...why, we are not sure. Why he wasn't put onto the next QF flight, I don't know. It's not like QF don't fly from ADL much. It's not a regional airport??????
He obviously didn't leave enough time between his original flight and his wedding.
He had a BP that had him sitting in row 30.
So, he basically didn't do anything right and got rewarded for his perceived incompetence with a plumb seat.

 

[maninblack]

Any the guy gets on last and after trying to upgrade spots seats 3A/B are empty and asks to sit there. The CS allowed him to move.

Still don't get what the guy did to deserve the lambasting he is receiving here.

Shock horror - He asked for a seat change and his request was granted. SO BLOODY WHAT :!:

Sounds to me like the OP is being quite churlish about this whole thing.

My advice - it's time to GET OVER IT

 

[drron]

Still don't get what the guy did to deserve the lambasting he is receiving here.

Shock horror - He asked for a seat change and his request was granted. SO BLOODY WHAT :!:

Sounds to me like the OP is being quite churlish about this whole thing.

My advice - it's time to GET OVER IT

Because the OPs trip was impacted unfavourably.
Surprise but people are entitled to have a different opinion to you.Take your own advice.

 

[Justchecking]

please see the thread topic for the questions that I'm asking.

I probably should add that whenever I've been on a VA flight this lightly loaded I've always had an empty middle seat.

Ok, then maybe the question really should be....does one have a right of complaint when one loses an undocumented, undefined and although often practiced, not guarateed benefit of being a status flyer? If that is the question then thinking about it, my answer is still no. It's something that they may have shown you the courtesy of practising. But like all nice gestures one really does need to be gracious in the times it isn't there. The problem is that when someone is going above and beyond a lot, the 'above and beyond' bit gets forgotten and it becomes expected as a standard.

2 cents.

 

[maninblack]

Because the OPs trip was impacted unfavourably.
Surprise but people are entitled to have a different opinion to you.Take your own advice.

Last time I looked I wasn't the one whining because someone dared to sit next to me on an airplane. I was trying to understand his contention but I really don't. Anyway, I guess we will just have to agree to agree that you and the OP are wrong.

 

[eastwest101]

Two sides to every story, and I was not there, but from the OP it seems that the "self upgraders" could possibly have had time constraints - if they were travelling with carry-on luggage only then they could have been anxious to get on their way upon arrival at destination as they may have already been running late, if they had checked baggage then they were wasting everyones time....

I think what the OP may have preferred was that the people originally allocated row 30 asked the cabin crew for Row 3 and then maybe the crew could have checked with the OP if that was OK. But there is usually a good reason that seating allocation is determined before people start asking to move when arriving on-board.

 

[lazybones1987]

I think what the OP may have preferred was that the people originally allocated row 30 asked the cabin crew for Row 3 and then maybe the crew could have checked with the OP if that was OK.

I don't understand why the crew needed the OPs permission. The OP was not advised that he was getting a shadow when he boarded the plane ( a benefit that is not documented), why should the FAs ask the OP for approval?
Say, if the FA had asked the OP for approval, would the OP say "Nope, I don't want that arrogant dude next to me".

 

[medhead]

Ok, then maybe the question really should be....does one have a right of complaint when one loses an undocumented, undefined and although often practiced, not guarateed benefit of being a status flyer? If that is the question then thinking about it, my answer is still no. It's something that they may have shown you the courtesy of practising. But like all nice gestures one really does need to be gracious in the times it isn't there. The problem is that when someone is going above and beyond a lot, the 'above and beyond' bit gets forgotten and it becomes expected as a standard.

2 cents.

Once more with feeling. Unpublished benefits have nothing to do with this, the guy decided to ignore his allocated seat. If anything the unpublished benefit was provided as the seat next to me was unallocated.

The problem, which I think I've mentioned already, is that his 'above and beyond' service turned my trip into cough. Focus on that question, is it worthy of feedback when giving someone special treatment negatively impacts on my experience?

Anyway, you've given your answer twice now. There is no requirement for you to keep coming back to misrepresent my question.

Last time I looked I wasn't the one whining because someone dared to sit next to me on an airplane. I was trying to understand his contention but I really don't. Anyway, I guess we will just have to agree to agree that you and the OP are wrong.

You don't understand my contention that deciding to ignore your allocated seat because you don't like it, is not ok? Ok then. I'm more than happy to disagree with you in that.

Two sides to every story, and I was not there, but from the OP it seems that the "self upgraders" could possibly have had time constraints - if they were travelling with carry-on luggage only then they could have been anxious to get on their way upon arrival at destination as they may have already been running late, if they had checked baggage then they were wasting everyones time....

There were no time limitations. It was the first flight of the day scheduled to leave 5 mins after the cancelled QF flight. Row 30 also has first access to the exit on disembarkation. The guy had roughly 8 other people in his group seating in rows about 8 to 16. He had to wait anyway.

I think what the OP may have preferred was that the people originally allocated row 30 asked the cabin crew for Row 3 and then maybe the crew could have checked with the OP if that was OK. But there is usually a good reason that seating allocation is determined before people start asking to move when arriving on-board.

I don't think I even needed to be asked for an OK (yes I did say that before). Maybe just an acknowledgement/consideration that giving that guy something extra was going to be negative for me. And an explanation like this guy has a problem, he's going to sit here. Much like my flight on Monday where someone was moved as we prepared for landing to make a connection. An explanation was given to the affected person.


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[eastwest101]

Once more with feeling. Unpublished benefits have nothing to do with this, the guy decided to ignore his allocated seat. ...SNIP.. is it worthy of feedback when giving someone special treatment negatively impacts on my experience?

I agree that ignoring allocated seat is an issue. In my opinion - I think that is worthy of feedback to VA, would be interested to hear the result of that.

 

[The Rok]

I thought it was mandatory that all passengers remained in their allocated seats for Take off and Landing for accident identification reasons?

Either way I think the OP is dead right. Unpublished benefit or not the FA had no business allocating a premium seat to an arrogant flier just for the sake of avoiding confrontation on the flight. Check in staff allocated this pax a specific seat, why does he feel he has the right to not accept it? If he was unhappy with the seat he should of raised it at check in. What next, oh, I boarded so late and held up the whole plane I should be allowed to sit in seat 1A?

I think a complaint is not the way but feed back certainly is, and I would imagine that Virgin Australia are reading this thread anyway so it probably won't be necessary.

Perhaps FA's need to be reminded of the value of a Shadow. It is a cheap (free) benefit to your most LOYAL customers.

I don't think medhead is being unreasonable. I do think there are a few folks in this forum who who need to look at the situation from the other side, i.e. medheads.

 

[straitman]

Last time I looked I wasn't the one whining because someone dared to sit next to me on an airplane. I was trying to understand his contention but I really don't. Anyway, I guess we will just have to agree to agree that you and the OP are wrong.

No one was whining! :shock:

The OP simply asked (in his own words)

is it worthy of feedback when giving someone special treatment negatively impacts on my experience?

Everyone is entitled to their opinion but just because they disagree with you does not mean they are wrong.

 

[richie9x]

I thought it was mandatory that all passengers remained in their allocated seats for Take off and Landing for accident identification reasons?

The reason Qantas give is because of trim settings for take off, i except Virgin would be similar.. But surely the CSM has some discretion in this matter. I wonder if there is an official guideline that covers this?

I have seen several examples where people have been moved before takeoff, maybe one flight in twenty. Sometimes for safety reasons. I have seen passengers sitting in an exit row moved out of it because their English wasn't good enough or they were too young. Once a passenger somehow got their seat belt stuck in the seat the FAs couldn't get it out so they were moved. On one flight my seat was quite damp before i sat on it, so when I pointed it out the CSM happily moved me to another empty seat. I have seen a Qantas CSM on a 767 move two passengers around in Business class before takeoff so a family could sit together.

 

[maninblack]

No one was whining! :shock:

The OP simply asked (in his own words)

Everyone is entitled to their opinion but just because they disagree with you does not mean they are wrong.

Far be it from me to disagree with a forum mod

You are quite correct to point out that the use of the word 'whining' is an unfair call by me, nevertheless I would contend that the OP carried his concern in this thread far beyond that one simple question through a considerable number of posts and expressed fairly vociferous dissatisfaction in quite a number of areas and also made a considerable number of both objective but also some highly subjective observations when expressing his concerns which IMO went beyond that one simple question that you refer to.

Surely anyone who disagrees with me is wrong per se.

 

[medhead]

I put it to you that I ceased the subjective observations once corrected by MuntialP and I acknowledged my error in making those observations a couple of times.

Personally, I find the constant claims that I'm concerned about the loss of an unpublished benefit to be churlish. I think it is wrong to think my concern is related to such loss or protection of said benefit. I would welcome your direction to anywhere where I have been surly or intractable when responding to opinions that address the question posed.


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