worldwidedreamer

MVP 100k here. I loved the Virgin America product a lot, but was an SFO-based UA 1k/Platinum for most of its life. I preferred Virgin, but while it "knows all the places I want to be" it did not offer to sell me tickets to many destinations it knew I wanted to go. I love how Virgin helped Alaska improve its game, especially inflight food, and that the combined airline joined OneWorld which means elite status has a global weight. (Even though a lot of OneWorld partner employees think Alaska is a regional airline like American Eagle.) Alaska will go through another acquisition soon, and as former Virgins...can we choose to be positive and appreciate Alaska? I hope Hawaiian becomes more Alaska than vice versa.

StevenSeagalFan

Virgin was the shiny new thing that made techies and hipsters feel "cool" and that's something that is a good memory for them so they think fondly of it. Meanwhile, they made a profit once, $1 million dollars, the last quarter of their independant existence.

blue bear

Never flew Virgin - but always gnashed my teeth having to book an ex-VA Airbus as I almost never got upgraded.

Eastbay1K

Of course you can be " unpopular" re: Virgin. I've had a couple of really awful flights up front on that airline, and who knows, probably some of the same atrocious crews providing the minimum of service on AS. On the other hand, I had some wonderful VX flights, a few times even enjoying a couple rounds of full bar PDB. I "appreciate Alaska" but call it out when it fails. It wants to play with the big boys but at times thinks it can get away with the same nonsense it used to by throwing us a few miles or a credit - but we're no longer talking about a West Coast flight - we're talking about the entire CONUS, 49 and 50.

Where VX excelled, and what I wish AS would emulate, is a true premium Y experience. It didn't require anything more than the current Y+ seating, or much in extra catering. It just required the crew to get off of its rear a bit more and provide service. It made even the shortest flights a pleasant experience, and the longer flights something that I would never feel like I got my head stomped on by asking for another beverage. It was a product that myself and others actually paid for.

Miss some things about VX, sure. Think about it very frequently, not at all. Waste my time on FT reading and posting about it? You bet.

sltlyamusd

Yeah I liked the VX seating and IFE but found the crews to be uneven. Some were great and very attentive while others had “attitude” for lack of a better phrase. I remember asking if we could get a beverage on a las-sfo flight and being told “no” without so much as even an apology. The movies on VX weren’t free in regular economy and neither were snacks so in some ways the product was actually a little more LCC. But I really miss the A321neos and wish AS held on to those.

TravelBrighter

Spot on. My experience flying VX was similar to my experience buying a certain cutting-edge tech product circa 2009 whose rabid fanboys kept glowing about, then being baffled by the lousy user experience and constant glitches. I found that their culture was very snooty and pompous about a product that was pretty middling.

985X

I once asked for an entire can of POG in premium class, FA told me no since they would probably run out. So I did ask for a full cup, no ice. Come on, that can of Hawaiian sun probably only costs 50c in Costco..

Eastbay1K

You could have simply ordered 3 or 4 of the from the screen (no not making excuses for a bad crew)

AKLifetimeFlyer

FlyerTalk (Legend 717) taught me the two-part trick to upgrading on those flights. As an AS MVP Gold at the time, it was possible to call and request a complimentary upgrade into MCS (Main Cabin Select). Then, because MCS and F fares were historically priced WAY too close to one another, you simply pay for the upgrade from MCS to F. I recall paying something in the realm of $250 for an SFO-MCO flight, well worth it for a long flight for the VX F product.

Baze

I really didn't like the interior colors used on VX planes. Not soothing to me at all.

Buster CT1K

VX F was a wonderful experience. I really do miss it.

There are great things about Hawaiian like lie-flat seats on the 330s. I don’t want AS to rip them out and replace them with the current F product!

PotomacApproach

The service was solid, but the FF program was weak and the innovations became old very quickly. The dart board route map was its demise. It really had no idea how to develop routes. Many of its short haul routes are now flown by E175s, and wouldn't work if AS had to fly them only with mainline aircraft.

diver858

Pure speculation, but will be a function of how AS ultimately deploys the A330's; lie-flats are tough to justify in 5-6 hour flights from the West Coast to Hawaii, possibly even secondary mainland US cities. May make more sense for longer haul TPAC - assuming AS pursues such destinations.

TalkingPoint

Theres a very similar trick still possible on AS…

cpworld

care to share?