How difficult was it to do the status match?

I looked at Virgin when the recent BAEC broohaha occurred. The problem for me is I do a lot of ex-EU in order to get better premium fares and a lot of connecting in the US. The former is very difficult on Virgin, and the latter requires me to rely on ...I can barely say the word...Delta.

Also, there are no partner lounge benefits, etc. It's too bad, because I like their Upper Class product, but the BA network has them beat for my needs.