Virgin America trip report SFO-JFK 11/17/07
 

I flew my first VX flight today, flight 231 from SFO-JFK.

I arrived at the boarding area 45 minutes prior to departure. The gate agent told us that we would be boarding in a few minutes. About 1 minute later, another gentleman took the microphone, and introduced himself as the captain of our flight. Oddly enough, many of the awaiting passengers started applauding. He went on to give us the flying time and the weather, and invited us to enjoy the flight, and to let him know personally if there is anything they could do better. I found this unusual, but nice.

Everything seemed to be in working order on the plane. No sign of the dreaded envelope with any bad news about the IFE or anything. I was in seat 2F, which was very comfortable. I pulled out the IFE screen from the armrest, and it worked fine. I did notice that it said that it must be stowed during taxi, takeoff, and landing, which was enforced by the flight crew. This meant that we didn't get to watch the safety video that was posted in another thread here, but we did get to listen to it. They should figure out a way to fix that.

The food was good, but I was a little bummed that I didn't get to see the coach food selection. If you are in first class, the "dining" button doesn't work, and instead pops up a window inviting you to ask your crew what's available.

I spent a good deal of time in the chat room, but I was the only one there, except for a 2 minute period in the middle of the flight when "Vanessa" from 25D paid a visit. We exchanged a couple of pleasantries, and she left.

The TV selection was good, and the on demand movies were good. I was surprised to also find on demand television. I've been putting off watching the Showtime original "Dexter", and watched the first two episodes during the flight.

All in all, the flight was at least as good as I expected. We pushed back 10 minutes early, and landed 20 minutes early. I never felt bored at all. There were only two things that bothered me (and one I already knew about):

1) The lack of under seat storage in row 2 is bothersome, but worth it for the IFE. I had already heard about this, so I wasn't surprised.

2) The IFE screens are widescreen (16x9), and the live TV and on demand TV is stretched to fill the screen, which makes the picture distorted. This is unacceptable to me, and I'm surprised I haven't read about it in here. I'm not sure if the on demand movies are anamorphic and thus in the correct ratio, because I didn't watch a movie. But I do not want to watch TV shows or sporting events stretched out. Put the image in the center of the screen and put some flight information or something around the sides.

I won't ask...

I have to say its disappointing to hear that no one uses the chat feature.

I must say that was probably the only thing that would make me want to fly Virgin America versus Jet Blue next time I'm headed west.

--Russ

If you flew from IAD, getting to land at SFO int'l term over OAK would be another.

Hah...I was working on my laptop, so just left the chat room up.

Well, B6 lands at the same gates as VX at SFO - so, that reason isn't really there.

But the overall experience on VX is not the same a B6. Using an on-board chat feature with 148 of your not-so-close-friends wouldn't be my sole criteria for trying a new airline.

It is if you want a direct flight from IAD.

What is different?


You get leather seats.

You get IFE at every seat.



The only difference I see is: first class option which I wouldn't be able to use if flying on a budget for leisure, mood lighting which is only apparent overnight, right? and chat.


--Russ

Different IFE, a lot more flexible than B6's offering. Better food choices. Mood lighting works day or night and is apparent at all times of the day. A certain "feel" from the crew, you're on a plane that's got attitude - in the right way.

VX and B6 are both far better than any legacy and WN. Honestly can't say which is better, but needless to say they've got a duopoly on all my transcon, Florida, and Northeast corridor flights. If they covered the midwest and Texas a little better, pretty much wouldn't fly anyone else domestically.

-B6 free extra legroom is a big plus, prefer their redeyes for this reason

-VX airports are better, especially SFO over OAK as I've mentioned elsewhere, if B6 flew IAD-SFO it would be tough call between the two

-Both have much better crews than the legacies, that said the VX crew I had SFO-IAD was probably one of the nicest, most attentive I can remember on a domestic flight, so slight edge to VX, although this probably will vary as they grow

-potential for a better FF program with VX, still in the dark about benefits and I use miles for free trips, not status, so any VS tie-in will be a major bonus

-whoever starts IAD-SEA might tip the scales for me, I know it's a seasonal market and UA throws heavies on the route in summer, but fares are much higher on that route than other major west coast mkts, at least hoping for VX to allow connections through SFO, because B6 through JFK isn't going to work with current delays

-a midwestern hub for either would also tip the scales, I understand the WN presence in MDW and MCI, but what about MSP? SY has a thin schedule there outside of their leisure routes

-I hope both continue to do well. No RJs (e190 feels like a regular plane), very few surly FAs, better legroom than the legacies, much better IFE. I choose airlines for their comfort, not because they can provide a false sense of importance through an "elite" program, and both VX and B6 have made domestic flying much more enjoyable than it was in the 90s.

I'd love to try Virgin America but they don't serve the routes I typically fly.

On my 30+ segments with Jet Blue over the past 18 months I've gotten good and bad vibes from the crew... overall I still enjoy flying them more than anyone else.

Food choices, again... flying coach I doublt I'll be paying $12 for a bite size snack. I'd rather get free biscotti and arizona ice tea from Jet Blue.


Don't get me wrong, I'll be trying VX sometime in the near future to see what the buzz is all about, but your argument that its leaps and bounds better than Jet Blue is not convincing me.

--Russ

another big point in VX's favor over B6 - ability to see seat inventory before booking, particularly important as we're planning a family trip to California

I agree. Seating is very important to me, and it's frustrating when working with B6 in this area. Believe it or not, which airline I select is often determined by what seat I can (or can't) get.

My wife and I flew VX last night SFO-JFK. There were no lines at SFO international. We walked straight up to check-in (although we checked in online, I wanted to check our bags and talk to the attendant), there was practically no-one in the security line. Pretty good for Thanksgiving Eve. Thankfully we were not flying UA, I doubt we would have come close using the elite lines at the domestic terminal.

There was someone to greet us and help us with check-in (baggage drop). There is definitely a better attitude among the Virgin employees. I was told that Chicago should be coming next year (no news what time next year) and that VX plan to fly into major Canadian cities (YVR, YYZ were mentioned) as well as Mexico. There was also a GA waiting at the gate the whole time.. UA only puts someone there at the last moment.

Plane was clean and comfortable. Loved the "look'n'feel". The mood lights were nice and Red was fun to play with. It had a couple glitches but nothing I couldn't work around or reload. Some older ppl may not be as comfortable with the style and technology, but we thought it was great. I'd prefer Google maps over UA Channel 9 any day (it was a little slow to update position sometimes, but hey - pressing "Center Plane" usually forced an update). I would like to see a "shuffle" feature for the playlist and maybe "remove all" and/or "add entire album" too.

We payed a little extra ($25) for exit rows, which were definitely worth it. Even after paying the extra for these rows and buying food, our tickets were much cheaper than UA and the flight was actually enjoyable. BTW - we had Chicken Caesar Salad and the Fruit and Cheese Platter, both were good (we shared). Love the food ordering in Red.

FAs were nice, made many passes to collect trash and give ppl the chance to ask for things. The water at the rear of the plane was a nice touch too. Also the choice of headphones or earphones and the "spares" at the front and back of the plane.

As soon as VX start flying my regular routes I'll be switching. On UA, you need 1P status for E+, exit rows and priority check-in. But with VX, you can book exit rows, buy good food and get shorter lines (at SFO int'l at least) and it still costs less. The service and IFE is the biggest plus. The only thing I would be missing are upgrades, but e-500s don't go very far anyway. Hopefully eleVAte will include upgrades. Better stop now before this turns into (a bigger) rant. Big ^ to VX :D

BTW - you can get Virgin T-Shirts from the Virgin Megastore at Union Square San Francisco. But my wife wouldn't let me wear it on the flight :(. She thought it would be geeky or dorky or something.

I just had to correct this bit of misinformation. You only need 3P status (Premier Associate) or higher to pre-book E+ and to use priority check-in. Exit rows are reserved for 1P and higher until day-of-flight, yes, but you can get into E+ even as a 3P (or as a non-elite if you buy E+ Access).

Not trying to get into whether or not VX is or is not better... but getting into E+ and using the priority check-in do not require 1P (Premier Executive = 50K EQM), and are therefore easier than you made them out to be.