Jmr007

We are flying Detroit - Mel in May. Identical price and total time with either airline for LAX - SYDNEY segment. I know delta, but not VA. We are 3, so different seat map no problem. Any other important differences to consider?
Thanks

thepaul500

Just recently had to make this decision myself.

VA is not all aisle access, but has an onboard bar. I've read trip reports where flights can get a bit rowdy.
Have never flown DL, but consensus seems to be better seats for sleeping.

We chose sleep. DL service is always good, though not fantastic, and as my wife and I are both DM, knew any IRROPS we would be among the first taken care of.

If you are crazy about planes, can often find KE for the same price (in dollars or miles) and get on the A380.

tomSEA

I've flown both and prefer VA. The service is better and I prefer the bed too. It's a bit longer and doesn't have the small footwell as on the DL 777's.

ashill

Pro-Delta: The connection in LAX is easier if you stay on Delta, since you won't have to change over to TBIT for the VA departure. There is an airside bus that goes from T5 to TBIT every 30 minutes, but it's obviously not nearly as simple as walking within T5 (or the 7 minute walk from T6 if your DTW flight arrives there -- a walk you'd have to make to get to the TBIT bus anyway).

Pro-VA: I've never been in it, but all reports are that the Star Alliance lounge VA uses at LAX beats the pants off of the LAX Sky Club.

I can't speak to the in-flight J experience; I have a very small preference for DL in coach because their in flight entertainment is more likely to have movies I want to watch and their coach seats are more padded than VA's.

realjd

In J, I prefer Delta if I'm flying on my own, VA if I'm flying with my wife. VA has better service and is more fun, but not every seat has direct aisle access. Honestly though, you can't go wrong either way.

If you're flying to MEL, why not take the direct LAX-MEL flight on VA? International to domestic connections at SYD are obnoxious.

jdrtravel

I want to second that The DL experience for the premium traveler at LAX is lackluster. The Sky Club is quite often over crowded and not that nice. Also, the 777's were the first planes to get flatbed seating, so they now have the oldest Business Class seats in DL's fleet (I think they were installed in 2009 or so). They have made updates to later ones on the 747 and 330 that are better.

pbarnette

The bar is kind of a joke IMO. Basically a narrow passageway with some booze along one wall. When I flew it, I did not see a single person actually using it beyond as a place to grab a drink to bring back to their seat.

As to the question... If you are flying alone, then I think DL is better. With a group, and assuming you don't mind having someone climbing over you, then VA has a better wine list, IIRC, and their seats are pretty nice.

dshides

I've had to make this decision in the recent past and opted to go with the DL service mainly due to the seating configuration. The Delta config is 1-2-1 where as VA is 2-3-2 so there would be some climbing to do over a neighbor if they were sleeping. My favorite seat on the DL 777 on this route is either 7A/D or 12A/D as it gives you the most real estate near your head when lying down.

One thing I will say is that the 777 interior feels tired and the IFE sometimes can have an issue where the unit will want to naturally swing close. I've had to get creative and cram some napkins in the hinge point so that it would stay open. I've never had an issue with the FA's for Delta but have heard that the VA service is a bit better (the on board bar is a plus). For these reasons, my next trip I will give VA a shot but for your purposes I suppose it really is a coin toss.

avidflyer

The upper deck bar on the KE 380 is pretty sweet. Has nice lounge seating along the wall and usually has a few patrons to strike up conversations with..pretty cool.

I have never had an issue with the 2-3-2 config because unless you are sleeping there is plenty of room for your seat mate to walk by on the VA layout. My opinion is that both the seat and the service are better than DL on VA..just my 2 cents.

MSPGabe

I really like both.

Row 5 in the VA 777's has potential to be really, really good. You have to request the seats day of, but they're curtained off and very private.

The downside is, the bassinets are in that row, so if there's an infant, it could be interesting.

Food was good on both. Not much of a difference IMO.

Cloth seat on VA is nice. Turndown service and PJs were nice. Downside is lack of direct aisle access. Also the footrest is metal, but has a little cloth cover, though mine came off midflight.

IFE is better on Delta. More of a selection. Though the screen it smaller on DL.

I think you'll be fine with either. Try one on the way down and one on the way back?

Colin

Given the unpleasantness of the intl-to-dom connection at SYD, I'd fly DTW-DL-LAX-QF-MEL or DTW-DL-LAX-UA-MEL, whichever is cheaper.

JS3MD

I recently made the trip on VA from LAX-SYD. There were 3 pax in my party and so we didn't mind having the 3 middle seats in J cabin. Our 9yo son had the middle seat and it worked really well for us.

My wife and I both agree that overall service/food/wine was better on VA than DL. Also, lounges (Star Alliance LAX and Etihad SYD) were superior to any DL SkyClub and we prefer the seats for sleeping on VA (VA's "starlit" ceiling is pretty cool...) vs DL 777 seats.

The small bar can be fun if you find yourself in a J cabin with social folks. Of course YMMV.

Another point to keep in mind. There appear to be very few VA staff at LAX. The check-in counter doesn't open until 330PM, and no US based VA staff were available (in case of problems) when we arrived from SYD back to LAX ~7AM.

Cheers and enjoy your trip.

dilbertsdaddy

I took J LAX-SYD and BNE-LAX with my wife. Much better on VA than DL when traveling together, we had 2 seats (aisle/window). If you have 3 people the 3 in the middle might work just fine.

Service, food, and atmosphere on VA is far superior to DL......

The only thing I did not like about VA is they will not let you take normal size rollaboards as carry on, only small carry ons.

If everything else is the same, I would choose DL if alone (privacy) or VA with the wife.

ashill

VA has switched from 4x/week LAX-BNE and 3x/week LAX-MEL to daily LAX-BNE; there is no more LAX-MEL.

(This happened around the time UA switched from LAX-SYD-MEL on a 747 to LAX-SYD on a 777 and LAX-MEL nonstop on a 787.)

International to domestic connections at BNE are perhaps marginally better than at SYD, but only marginally.

pbarnette

I was underwhelmed with the KE 380 and think DL superior in pretty much every way, but that is another topic.

The problem is that, given the timing, you will likely be sleeping for 8 hours or more on the outbound and potentially as long on the way back. I greatly prefer to not have people climbing over me, or having to climb myself, even when traveling with my wife.