RIP VX
#61
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: San Francisco
Programs: AA EXP; Marriott BonVoy Titanium Elite, Marriott LT Plat.
Posts: 1,717
First SPG is slated to be going away and now VX.. Danm!! My travels for work and pleasure are sure going to suck even more as these two entities go "bye-bye"!
#62
Join Date: Apr 2003
Programs: B6 Mosaic, Bonvoy LT Titanium (x SPG LT), IHG Spire, UA Silver
Posts: 5,834
I feel your pain. Just used up 120,000 Starpoints on a nice Luxury Collection/St. Regis vacation in Mexico City. Already up to 60 nights so far this year with Starwood. Now I have until the end of the year to burn up my Virgin points. Plus trying out Hyatt with their promo and the status match. Enjoying things while they last. Don't have to bother charging things to the VX comenity card to get to help get Elevate Gold again this year now as Alaska is just marginally more attractive than a legacy carrier, so lots of changes. We will see what happens. Got my jetBlue Mint tickets this weekend for Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas...so that is one thing that won't change...for now.
#63
Join Date: Apr 2009
Posts: 132
Even merged they are only the 5th largest domestic airline. Alaska airlines does not have much of a presence at either LAX or SFO which are Virgin Americas hubs. If anything this merger may be viewed as helping competition since they might be able to better compete against the big airlines.
#65
Join Date: May 2011
Posts: 5,814
The only other option seems to be Virgin Limited Edition.
https://www.virginamerica.com/cms/el...edition-redeem
Redemption options would improve (drastically) with AS.
#66
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Las Vegas NV
Programs: BA Gold; Marriott Gold ; Hilton Gold
Posts: 44
The merger is such sad news. I will never fly Alaska Airlines because of the Alaska 261 crash. Every time I see their planes, I still think of that plane crashing into the ocean...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska...nes_Flight_261
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska...nes_Flight_261
#67
Join Date: Apr 2003
Programs: B6 Mosaic, Bonvoy LT Titanium (x SPG LT), IHG Spire, UA Silver
Posts: 5,834
#70
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Seattle WA
Programs: DL DM, Marriott Titanium, AA PLT for Life
Posts: 398
#71
Suspended
Join Date: Oct 2010
Posts: 3,790
#73
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: SEA
Programs: NZ Elite (*G)
Posts: 655
Forgive me for posting on this emotional subject. I flew Virgin America yesterday for the first time. My experience with them instilled much anger into me, although the flight attendants were gracious.
I paid for a First Class flight but received notification that I would be moved down to Main Cabin Select for reasons they said they were not allowed to state but with a refund of the fare difference (which in reality was $0 - in other words, it was bait and switch), although they placed money in my newly established "bank". After an exchange of emails asking for specific explanation for why my First Class booking was not being honored, and to which they refused to explain, I cancelled the booking I originally had (I refuse to pay for First Class and only receive Main Cabin Select) and used the "bank" money to rebook in Main Cabin Select. As it turned out, yesterday on my flight 3 people were upgraded (at a cost of $99 according to the flight attendant) into First Class, including the gentleman sitting in my row who was upgraded immediately before the door was closed. All I can say is I'm glad this company is being bought out. I'm very angry regarding how they treated me (I showed the flight attendants all the e-mails between me and the company and they were at a loss for why my First Class booking was downgraded to Main Cabin Select).
I understand my situation is (hopefully) unique but any company that treats a new first-class paying customer in this way deserves to disappear. Alaska has never treated me so poorly as Virgin America. (Not even United has treated me this way).
I paid for a First Class flight but received notification that I would be moved down to Main Cabin Select for reasons they said they were not allowed to state but with a refund of the fare difference (which in reality was $0 - in other words, it was bait and switch), although they placed money in my newly established "bank". After an exchange of emails asking for specific explanation for why my First Class booking was not being honored, and to which they refused to explain, I cancelled the booking I originally had (I refuse to pay for First Class and only receive Main Cabin Select) and used the "bank" money to rebook in Main Cabin Select. As it turned out, yesterday on my flight 3 people were upgraded (at a cost of $99 according to the flight attendant) into First Class, including the gentleman sitting in my row who was upgraded immediately before the door was closed. All I can say is I'm glad this company is being bought out. I'm very angry regarding how they treated me (I showed the flight attendants all the e-mails between me and the company and they were at a loss for why my First Class booking was downgraded to Main Cabin Select).
I understand my situation is (hopefully) unique but any company that treats a new first-class paying customer in this way deserves to disappear. Alaska has never treated me so poorly as Virgin America. (Not even United has treated me this way).
#74
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: Over the Bay Bridge, CA
Programs: Jumbo mas
Posts: 38,506
The merger is such sad news. I will never fly Alaska Airlines because of the Alaska 261 crash. Every time I see their planes, I still think of that plane crashing into the ocean...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska...nes_Flight_261
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska...nes_Flight_261
#75
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: Over the Bay Bridge, CA
Programs: Jumbo mas
Posts: 38,506
Forgive me for posting on this emotional subject. I flew Virgin America yesterday for the first time. My experience with them instilled much anger into me, although the flight attendants were gracious.
I paid for a First Class flight but received notification that I would be moved down to Main Cabin Select for reasons they said they were not allowed to state but with a refund of the fare difference (which in reality was $0 - in other words, it was bait and switch), although they placed money in my newly established "bank". After an exchange of emails asking for specific explanation for why my First Class booking was not being honored, and to which they refused to explain, I cancelled the booking I originally had (I refuse to pay for First Class and only receive Main Cabin Select) and used the "bank" money to rebook in Main Cabin Select. As it turned out, yesterday on my flight 3 people were upgraded (at a cost of $99 according to the flight attendant) into First Class, including the gentleman sitting in my row who was upgraded immediately before the door was closed. All I can say is I'm glad this company is being bought out. I'm very angry regarding how they treated me (I showed the flight attendants all the e-mails between me and the company and they were at a loss for why my First Class booking was downgraded to Main Cabin Select).
I understand my situation is (hopefully) unique but any company that treats a new first-class paying customer in this way deserves to disappear. Alaska has never treated me so poorly as Virgin America. (Not even United has treated me this way).
I paid for a First Class flight but received notification that I would be moved down to Main Cabin Select for reasons they said they were not allowed to state but with a refund of the fare difference (which in reality was $0 - in other words, it was bait and switch), although they placed money in my newly established "bank". After an exchange of emails asking for specific explanation for why my First Class booking was not being honored, and to which they refused to explain, I cancelled the booking I originally had (I refuse to pay for First Class and only receive Main Cabin Select) and used the "bank" money to rebook in Main Cabin Select. As it turned out, yesterday on my flight 3 people were upgraded (at a cost of $99 according to the flight attendant) into First Class, including the gentleman sitting in my row who was upgraded immediately before the door was closed. All I can say is I'm glad this company is being bought out. I'm very angry regarding how they treated me (I showed the flight attendants all the e-mails between me and the company and they were at a loss for why my First Class booking was downgraded to Main Cabin Select).
I understand my situation is (hopefully) unique but any company that treats a new first-class paying customer in this way deserves to disappear. Alaska has never treated me so poorly as Virgin America. (Not even United has treated me this way).