Will you still earn/retain Velocity status beyond 2025?

[TMP]

Oddly there are plenty of flying choices, not connected with Virgin!

For decades, I stuck within their pretty limited network and worked within it. Worked for us, and worked for Virgin.

Looking now at flying Qantas Business Class to Santiago Chile, as Qantas has a very cheap deal on.

Would you really, really (!) have looked at a Virgin partner airline for the convoluted flights needed to get to Santiago?

 

[serfty]

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[Layslow]

Will be intersting to see VA's half yearly results on Friday to see if any of this matters. As someone who travels both airlines - Qantas is killing it at the moment.

 

[simmomelb]

Handing out 45 BONUS SC for someone taking a $60 flight Sydney-Ballina last month, in usually worthless LITE class, plus all the extra miles is SCREAMING of total desperation and full scale PANIC,

Wow a whopping 45 status credits for a return, huge (not)
And capped at 125. I used to make far more than that on a MEL -BNE one way in business, used to be 80 + another 80, because DSC is 2 x, unlike the 45 x status credits you were claiming 2 pages back.
Used to be able to get 160 status credits MEL to OOL or BNE for $299 or $279 on Bus Flyer back when Rex had 737's competing.

Where are you getting ALL THESE EXTRA MILES from? It's measly 10 Velocity points each way, valued at approximately 3 cents (no seriously!)
It's so low that I thought it was a typo.

 

[simmomelb]

Just saw this Ayesha de Kretser article in the AFR yesterday which touches on this promo, (and she also comments on some of the Qatar flights being cancelled) - This accurate stuff Virgin does NOT want in mainstream media - Very 'TACO' Trumpian!

They aren't being cancelled as such, if you read the article, properly, they are reducing flights from Perth & Brisbane for a full 1 month only and 2 months only for Adelaide, before it returns to the same schedule as now.
Airlines do this all the time, because of load factors changing throughout the year.

Virgin is reducing flights to Doha out of Perth and Brisbane, cutting 2 flights from each city per week between Feb 16 and March 16. Reducing 7788 seats to 6362. Qatar meanwhile has reduced flights by 2 per week from Adelaide from April 13 and June 15.

United is about to do the same, lifting it's flights in October out of Melbourne to 5 days a week, then to 7 in December and then back down to 5 a week after the Australian summer period.

Emirates and Qantas do this on a yearly basis also on different routes. Happy to give you info on this if you'd like to see it?

 

[Layslow]

They aren't being cancelled as such, if you read the article, properly, they are reducing flights from Perth & Brisbane for a full 1 month only and 2 months only for Adelaide, before it returns to the same schedule as now.
Airlines do this all the time, because of load factors changing throughout the year.

Virgin is reducing flights to Doha out of Perth and Brisbane, cutting 2 flights from each city per week between Feb 16 and March 16. Reducing 7788 seats to 6362. Qatar meanwhile has reduced flights by 2 per week from Adelaide from April 13 and June 15.

United is about to do the same, lifting it's flights in October out of Melbourne to 5 days a week, then to 7 in December and then back down to 5 a week after the Australian summer period.

Point of the article was they are all VA designated flights - none of the reductions in services were QR operated ones .... Not a good look regardless of any seasonality issues.

 

[simmomelb]

Point of the article was they are all VA designated flights - none of the reductions in services were QR operated ones ..... Not a good look regardless of any seasonality issues.

Wrong. "Qatar meanwhile, has reduced flights by 2 per week from Adelaide from April 13 and June 15." As I posted above.
Virgin doesn't fly wet-leased out of Adelaide.
Again, ALL major airlines change schedules yearly on certain routes, based on load factors - how is that not a good look?
It's how the entire industry works to maximise the use of available aircraft; if they didn't, it would be concerning.

 

[jase05]

Point of the article was they are all VA designated flights - none of the reductions in services were QR operated ones .... Not a good look regardless of any seasonality issues.

Not true.
ADL doesn’t have VA operated flights so the cut to us is QR operated flights.
I also believe the PER cuts are also to QR operated aircraft not the VA flights

 

[Layslow]

Not true.
ADL doesn’t have VA operated flights so the cut to us is QR operated flights.
I also believe the PER cuts are also to QR operated aircraft not the VA flights

Still a terrible look for QR, and a confidence killer for VA

 

[ozstamps]

Will be intersting to see VA's half yearly results on Friday to see if any of this matters.

As someone who travels both airlines - Qantas is killing it at the moment.

Out of interest, why do you feel Qantas is 'killing it at the moment.'

Better FF program? Better Elite benefits? Better partners? Better offers etc? I get the feeling folks are happier there now Joyce has gone?

One thing is for CERTAIN - Virgin shares are down 7.14% this year so far. Not a great sign in a booming stockmarket - the booming ASX in general is up about 5% in the same period, so Virgin are WAY under-water, and no-one can convince me this is not due in some part to many once loyal Elites jumping ship, and not spending as with Virgin as they once did.

https://www.marketindex.com.au/asx/vgn

And I do not feel any desertion by a chunk of elites will really show in this Friday's report as it covers the last half year, as any major impact of that will be seen during this year I'd guess.

LOTS of review dates are Feb 28 - i.e. now. Loss of status to many right now, will be loss of income to Virgin going forward when they get the dreaded email - 'Hi, we are delighted to advise your Virgin Status and benefits have dropped, starting today' .

 

[leesionn]

Still a terrible look for QR, and a confidence killer for VA

Not really for either. VA already don't particularly financially benefit from the wet-lease flights (as has been stated by them), and probably don't legitimately have ambitions to re-enter long haul flying. They were doing just fine beforehand, I'm sure they can do just fine afterwards.

Also with regards to QR - they've cut capacity to Adelaide due to Doha runway closures (for upgrades I believe)? Airlines cut service all the time based on seasons as mentioned above - QR have cut back SFO flights as well. QR removed the A380 from Perth when the VA wet lease flights started because of capacity and economics.

Korean have even cutback on Atlanta for 1Q27 next year - does that mean it's a bad look?

Mods feel free to remove or edit if off topic, apologies.

 

[RooFlyer]

the booming ASX in general is up about 5% in the same period, so Virgin are WAY under-water, and no-one can convince me this is not due in some part to many once loyal Elites jumping ship, and not spending as with Virgin as they once did.

And I do not feel any desertion by a chunk of elites will really show in this Friday's report as it covers the last half year, as any major impact of that will be seen during this year I'd guess.

Ummm ... so which is it? Investors in 2026 YTD seeing the effect of 'elites jumping ship' (but not you!) and selling down (not sure how they'd 'see' it, BTW) OR won't be seen until later this year after H1 report?

Real life - I dropped for Plat to Gold a couple of weeks ago. Still booking, still flying VA, just like you. Go figure. We'll probably be sitting next to each other next week, enjoying the VA tucker and ambiance. Good, innit?