VA wishlist. Time for.....

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juliusg

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Jun 28, 2010
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I'm a Plat, and I'm suffering innovation deprivation after the excitement of the past four years. How about THESE cost effective innovations..... (and do you have more?)


  • Trans-con 737. Since we understand we will encounter the 737 even between Syd - Perth, who not make the thing comfortable in Biz! The current seat is rubbish for the premium trans-con. Maybe go with the Virgin America model? I'm noting VA559 in May (1pm Sydney > Perth) is a 737 and many weekend flights are as well. That Trans-con bird would be the right thing for NZ and Bali too. Anyone agree? Innovate!
  • Less lounge announcements! At 2.45pm I am hearing an announcement about a delayed departure for the 5.30pm flight due aircraft issues. No one in the lounge would care about that so far ahead.
  • How about less lounge announcement PA level? I am an audio engineer but anyone with two ears could calibrate the Sydney lounge PA to a more manageable level.
  • How about an 'announcement' zone, with the rest of the lounge quiet?
  • We need some expansion, J.B. The 5 x 777 USA / Abu Dhabi schedule is becoming boring. And did we note Etihad's board representative is missing most meetings.... seems like SQ and NZ are 'more interested'. Innovate!
  • Plat is terminal. Give me some higher level to shoot for. My status credits go to nothing after I qualify for Plat renewal, usually 6 months into the year. I have nothing to shoot for.

C'mon J.B. - we love it when you are on a roll. Right now, it is boring!

Maybe I need to take some QF flights and get some status over there. (Shudder)

- Julius
 
I'm a Plat, and I'm suffering innovation deprivation after the excitement of the past four years. How about THESE cost effective innovations..... (and do you have more?)


  • Trans-con 737. Since we understand we will encounter the 737 even between Syd - Perth, who not make the thing comfortable in Biz! The current seat is rubbish for the premium trans-con. Maybe go with the Virgin America model? I'm noting VA559 in May (1pm Sydney > Perth) is a 737 and many weekend flights are as well. That Trans-con bird would be the right thing for NZ and Bali too. Anyone agree? Innovate!
  • Less lounge announcements! At 2.45pm I am hearing an announcement about a delayed departure for the 5.30pm flight due aircraft issues. No one in the lounge would care about that so far ahead.
  • How about less lounge announcement PA level? I am an audio engineer but anyone with two ears could calibrate the Sydney lounge PA to a more manageable level.
  • How about an 'announcement' zone, with the rest of the lounge quiet?
  • We need some expansion, J.B. The 5 x 777 USA / Abu Dhabi schedule is becoming boring. And did we note Etihad's board representative is missing most meetings.... seems like SQ and NZ are 'more interested'. Innovate!
  • Plat is terminal. Give me some higher level to shoot for. My status credits go to nothing after I qualify for Plat renewal, usually 6 months into the year. I have nothing to shoot for.

C'mon J.B. - we love it when you are on a roll. Right now, it is boring!

Maybe I need to take some QF flights and get some status over there. (Shudder)

- Julius

Some good points there but can I chime in with:

Trans-con 737. Since we understand we will encounter the 737 even between Syd - Perth, who not make the thing comfortable in Biz! Or how about just price the product realistically seeing as you will be running against more and more QF A330 new suites as Qantas changes them all over.

Here's another crazy thought - how about a web site that works properly, and allows customers to book multicity or do slightly imaginative bookings and allow you to search $$ and reward bookings and seat selection on your partners such as SQ DL EY and NZ? What about single sign-on that remembers that you're already logged into Velocity? Bonus points if the web site can add up the cost of fares correctly. Would save us calling the VA and Velocity call centres all the time....
 
I'm a Plat, and I'm suffering innovation deprivation after the excitement of the past four years. How about THESE cost effective innovations..... (and do you have more?)


  • Trans-con 737. Since we understand we will encounter the 737 even between Syd - Perth, who not make the thing comfortable in Biz! The current seat is rubbish for the premium trans-con. Maybe go with the Virgin America model? I'm noting VA559 in May (1pm Sydney > Perth) is a 737 and many weekend flights are as well. That Trans-con bird would be the right thing for NZ and Bali too. Anyone agree? Innovate!
  • Less lounge announcements! At 2.45pm I am hearing an announcement about a delayed departure for the 5.30pm flight due aircraft issues. No one in the lounge would care about that so far ahead.
  • How about less lounge announcement PA level? I am an audio engineer but anyone with two ears could calibrate the Sydney lounge PA to a more manageable level.
  • How about an 'announcement' zone, with the rest of the lounge quiet?
  • We need some expansion, J.B. The 5 x 777 USA / Abu Dhabi schedule is becoming boring. And did we note Etihad's board representative is missing most meetings.... seems like SQ and NZ are 'more interested'. Innovate!
  • Plat is terminal. Give me some higher level to shoot for. My status credits go to nothing after I qualify for Plat renewal, usually 6 months into the year. I have nothing to shoot for.

C'mon J.B. - we love it when you are on a roll. Right now, it is boring!

Maybe I need to take some QF flights and get some status over there. (Shudder)

- Julius

Yes to all of that. It's great that JB is excited about the new A330 J seats (and they are great), but it only addresses a small amount of my travel.

I want to see international flights to another city – HKG would be ideal, or even SIN to feed more pax onto SQ flights.

And completely agree about a new status level. The SC waste is so frustrating!
 
I'm a Plat, and I'm suffering innovation deprivation after the excitement of the past four years. How about THESE cost effective innovations..... (and do you have more?)


  • Trans-con 737. Since we understand we will encounter the 737 even between Syd - Perth, who not make the thing comfortable in Biz! The current seat is rubbish for the premium trans-con. Maybe go with the Virgin America model? I'm noting VA559 in May (1pm Sydney > Perth) is a 737 and many weekend flights are as well. That Trans-con bird would be the right thing for NZ and Bali too. Anyone agree? Innovate!

Not just for Trans Con, that is the biggest let down of Virign in my eyes is the cough excuse for business class on their 737 and my biggest put off for flying them to NZ, South Pacific etc etc Qantas isn't much better but it has a foot rest at the very least!

Even if the current one could have a tablet holder or something installed, it's so akward trying to watch a movie then meal service comes and no where for tablet to go except into the seat pocket.
 
I cannot disagree more on a new VA 'P1' level. Personal experience from two years of QF P1 is that you only get back what they stripped off QF WP previously. Things like preselecting row 4/23 seating, free exit row seating, fee free award booking etc are all things QF WP used to get previously. I would abolish QF P1 and improve WP if I was QF as it was a complete failure IMHO.

As the gap between VA SG and WP is so small now, the best opportunity is to improve the WP product before trying to introduce a higher tier.

Things I would like to see would be actively assigned shadows where available for WP (particularly 3B and 3E). A reduction in the number of points to upgrade Saver fares to around QF levels (16k-20k for PER-BNE/SYD/MEL) is also a must. Better integration with the codeshare partners would also help (better/any seat selection on SQ codeshares etc).
 
I cannot disagree more on a new VA 'P1' level. Personal experience from two years of QF P1 is that you only get back what they stripped off QF WP previously. Things like preselecting row 4/23 seating, free exit row seating, fee free award booking etc are all things QF WP used to get previously. I would abolish QF P1 and improve WP if I was QF as it was a complete failure IMHO.

As the gap between VA SG and WP is so small now, the best opportunity is to improve the WP product before trying to introduce a higher tier.

Things I would like to see would be actively assigned shadows where available for WP (particularly 3B and 3E). A reduction in the number of points to upgrade Saver fares to around QF levels (16k-20k for PER-BNE/SYD/MEL) is also a must. Better integration with the codeshare partners would also help (better/any seat selection on SQ codeshares etc).

I hadn't thought of that at all, but makes sense.

You're right – no point adding another tier without improving WP's benefits.
 
All I want for Xmas is international expansion... But it appears I'm kidding myself!
 
All I want for Xmas is international expansion... But it appears I'm kidding myself!
Me too. Hong Kong screams out as obvious, but SQ would probably veto that. Here's a curveball question: why can't SQ code share with VA on a VA operated Australia to Hong Kong service?? That'd give their pax a minor circle Pacific option!

Seems some of the Perth A330 services have been drafted onto Fiji.... remember when ALL weekday flights Syd/Melb to Perth were A330? Not now.
 
Some good points there but can I chime in with:

Trans-con 737. Since we understand we will encounter the 737 even between Syd - Perth, who not make the thing comfortable in Biz! Or how about just price the product realistically seeing as you will be running against more and more QF A330 new suites as Qantas changes them all over.

Here's another crazy thought - how about a web site that works properly, and allows customers to book multicity or do slightly imaginative bookings and allow you to search $$ and reward bookings and seat selection on your partners such as SQ DL EY and NZ? What about single sign-on that remembers that you're already logged into Velocity? Bonus points if the web site can add up the cost of fares correctly. Would save us calling the VA and Velocity call centres all the time....

The big one for me and a lot of the reason I have flown more QF than VA this year. I just can't stand having to log in twice every time on their poor excuse for a website, it really is a bad look and I can't work out why it hasn't been fixed.
 
The big one for me and a lot of the reason I have flown more QF than VA this year. I just can't stand having to log in twice every time on their poor excuse for a website, it really is a bad look and I can't work out why it hasn't been fixed.

Exactly - same product, same schedule and prices essentially the same. One has a web site that generally works, the other one has a web site that is twice as difficult as the other and you end up having to phone for the most routine changes/alterations or tasks. Guess which airline some customers will choose? Especially customers whom frequently have to do their own bookings?
 
Trying to trade off cost vs real improvement in the (for all - not just AFF/lounge) pax experience, then

- announcements ceased in lounges (this goes for QF as well)
- major upgrade to the MEL terminal - i waited there last week for someone and it's claustrophobic, over-crowded and has a lack of amenities in the main pier.
- improved J seating on 738 (hello foot rest)
- web site, web site, web site
- consistent / seamless recognition across partner carriers

There's tons of others but these are probably the ones i'd focus on first.

Higher-risk would be to improve international options direct from Aus but that could be a licence to burn money so i'd start with the above first....
 
I don't think they lack for destinations, it's aircraft (and all the associated services) they don't have. A few 787s/A350s (or even run-out A330s) could let them run to Hong Kong, somewhere other than LAX on the west coast of the US, or Japan, or China, or even South America if they wanted to take a risk!

My guess is that they have decided to effectively not run an international network and use their partners instead. The 777s are a token effort, presumably their main purpose at this point is to put pricing pressure on QF for the trans pac runs (and to let VA pretend they run a long haul network for marketing purposes).
 
Things I would like to see would be actively assigned shadows where available for WP (particularly 3B and 3E).

I think a lot of 3B & 3E allocations are probably to Plat's on fly-ahead. I say this from personal experience as a big user of fly-ahead. It's often the case I'm advised "we only have middle seats avail in Row 3 or we can put you further back". Thus, another Plat's shadow disappears if I take it. So really, fly-ahead is one benefit coming at the cost of another.
 
In terms of future int routes, Japan would be a great one.

Bringing ANA into the VA virtual alliance would be perfect, since it's a region missing from the network, and provides a whole new long-haul network out of HND. Not sure what SQ would have to say about it though.

In terms of partnerships, would also like to see SAS join in. Intra-Europe is another part of the world missing (Airberlin just doesn't cover enough). And maybe a South American partner too.
 
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Not being able to upgrade partner fares with points is a big shortfall, as is the fact that Reward Seats and Upgrades come out of the same allocation, rendering the Gold/Platinum long-haul upgrade perk far less valuable.

Being able to get to Hong Kong whilst earning (or spending) Velocity points without stopping over in Singapore would be nice - a good use of an A330 with those excellent new J seats, would everyone not agree?

The website needs a few basic improvements to get up-to-par with other carriers:

- Fixing the broken SSL/TLS configuration on the Velocity website - it's 2015, RC4 is dead - fix it. fly.virginaustralia.com has nice modern cryptography to keep details safe (as mandated by PCI DSS) - there's no reason to not do the same for the other sites
- Calendar-style view for bookings instead of the slow, clunky one-day-per-page we currently see
- The ability to book and upgrade in one flow
- The ability to upgrade long-haul international online (why this can't be done right now is beyond me)
- Removing call centre interactions for redeeming Virgin Money TWO41, American Express Platinum Edge and American Express Velocity Platinum free flight entitlements
- Status Credit and Velocity Points earn information when selecting fares
 
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