Virgin America Elevate - Hurricane Irene

So I'm flying SFO-IAD tomorrow and my flight is scheduled to arrive at 6:40 PM which is when Irene is close to DC and winds are predicted. I've been trying to reach the CS, but I'm getting hold times of a hour and got dropped. The one time I got to an agent, they kept telling me that my flight wasn't canceled and they only could put me on an earlier flight tonight, not a later one in one of the dates they said they could rebook to in the email I received.

I just would rather not spend all day in the airport or get diverted if I try to fly tomorrow. I don't really want to be there when the hurricane hits so I'd rather fly in on Monday or Tuesday instead.

Anybody have any idea why Virgin hasn't canceled their flights yet like most other major airlines? Anybody else have their flights affected by Irene and had luck with rescheduling their flight?

I tweeted about it to @VirginAmerica and got a reply, so I'm hoping it all gets sorted out.

Updating- my flight eventually got canceled and was on hold for three hours but I got it resolved on Twitter by @VirginAmerica before I reached someone for the second time.

I never realized how powerful twitter could be to get you some help until now.

It really shouldn't be. I've become a bit irate that companies put more focus on answering feedback on Twitter or Facebook, than they do in answering their phones and really helping customers out who wish to speak to a human being.

It's even shocking the turnaround time for an e-mail vs. how some companies feel about twitter.

I kind of agree- it's like a squeaky wheel that gets the oil. The first time I called, I was only on hold for a hour which wasn't too terrible but the second time was 3+ hours.

Twitter is nice for little stuff that's not really worth a call like questions or minor complaints. I didn't think they'd actually rebook me via twitter. It's probably faster nowdays because the CS reps using twitter/facebook can multi task and help more than one customer at once while the ones on phone only can help one at a time.

Does VX oversell? Do you think any of the flights on Monday and on will have any voluntary/involuntary bumps?

Does VX oversell? Do you think any of the flights on Monday and on will have any voluntary/involuntary bumps?

No they do not.

No they do not.

But they sure do under-staff. This totally useless airline has my teenage niece stuck in a hotel with no power and no way to talk to them about getting on a flight before September 9th because they never answer the phones and their website is useless. It is not as if they did not know this storm was coming. Branson is fantastic at flying balloons around the world and totally and utterly useless at customer service when it comes to running an airline. It is clear that he does not care about customers and the whole basis of Virgin advertising is a sham of smoke and mirrors and bait and switch. How difficult would it be to actually staff the phones with enough people??? :mad::mad::mad::mad:

That's ridiculous. How many companies keep an extra staff supply on hand in case of a weather event? They need extra people MAYBE 10 days a year.

Like most companies, I'm sure they're trying to keep costs down by having the least number of paid employees around.

Have you tried using the "Click to Chat" function online? Might save you some time waiting for someone to answer a phone.

Yes, "Click to Chat" is the preferred method of online communications with VX in order to get a quick, effective response. Far better than calling.

But they sure do under-staff. This totally useless airline has my teenage niece stuck in a hotel with no power and no way to talk to them about getting on a flight before September 9th because they never answer the phones and their website is useless. It is not as if they did not know this storm was coming. Branson is fantastic at flying balloons around the world and totally and utterly useless at customer service when it comes to running an airline. It is clear that he does not care about customers and the whole basis of Virgin advertising is a sham of smoke and mirrors and bait and switch. How difficult would it be to actually staff the phones with enough people??? :mad::mad::mad::mad:

FYI: Not to suggest cross posting here but you've started a thread as a complaint OP on the VS Forum about the same issue that belongs in VS. You posted the above on the VX Forum. VX and VS are separate companies although the Virgin Group has some interest in VX. Your post above is not really a VX issue.

FYI. Looks like VX has put on an extra flight tomorrow LAX JFK departing at 12, and then JFK LAX departing at 9.20PM if anyone is still stuck.

My boss was supposed to fly back JFK-SFO last Saturday or Sunday but had to ride out the storm. Not surprisingly, the earliest VX offered to get him out of town was Friday. :td: He ended up buying a new ticket on AA out of PHL yesterday.