ba319-131 From United Kingdom, joined Jan 2001, 8259 posts, RR: 56 Reply 5, posted (4 months 3 weeks 1 day 4 hours ago) and read 4716 times:
Nice advert but pure fantasy as the end product is northing like this, just very average and on par with it's competitors really.
I don't use VS anymore, whilst the have nice planes, A330/340 in the main, they offer little that makes me wish to switch.
My dad and his wife flew back from SFO in UC a few weeks ago, said it was the worst longhaul flight ever, poor catering, uncomfortable seat and disinterested crew.
Now he hates BA with a passion but said the connecting LHR-MAN BA flight was better than the VS one.
It would be great to see VS stand out from the crowd, it helps the competition lift their game, but will we? - more smoke and mirrors?
B747forever From United States of America, joined May 2007, 16574 posts, RR: 11 Reply 6, posted (4 months 3 weeks 1 day 4 hours ago) and read 4683 times:
I dont know, I do not get any particular feeling for this advert. Compared to BAs ad from last year it doesnt stand a chance.
If you are trying to promoted a pilot recruitment drive then the BA one wins, but when it comes to brand promotion, I think that Virgin is the king.
I love this new ad, very Virgin.
AndyEastMids From United Kingdom, joined Jan 2001, 996 posts, RR: 2 Reply 8, posted (4 months 3 weeks 1 day 3 hours ago) and read 4547 times:
Sorry, that ARD in my original should have been "aired"...
Anyway, I think it nicely reflects what Virgin want the brand to be recognised as, but I wonder whether the brand can actually deliver...
On the other hand, last years BA campaign told me nothing about the brand and the product - it just told me they had a heritage and it was a nice ad for plane spotters. IMHO this new Virgin pitch definitely targets more accurately but it'll all be about the delivery
garpd From UK - Scotland, joined Aug 2005, 2296 posts, RR: 4 Reply 9, posted (4 months 3 weeks 1 day 3 hours ago) and read 4447 times:
Yet more lies and deceit from an airline that only delivers an average service. Flashy and sexy the ad may be, but it just sets the average show up for disappointment once they are on board.
I too have friends who travel frequently. Their regular BA flight was fully booked in the J cabin, so they went UC with Virgin.
"Never again" said the pair of them in tandem. Bad food, completely disinterested crew on board and in the lounge.
They ended up having to fly VS again. This time one of their PTVs was not working, at first the crew didn't react to their request for help for over 3 hours. After spotting two other seats in UC were free, they asked if they could move over as they could see both PTVs were working fine. "No, it's against aviation rules" they were told. The cabin crew then gave them the cold shoulder for the rest of the flight and persistently served them last.
Their J class BA flight the following week was leaps and bounds better, even though it was a visibly older machine and a far busier cabin. according to this pair.
I call BS on this one, I'm sorry, but I in no way believe that the crew told them that they could not move to two spare seats that were working knowing full well that their assigned seat screens were broken. Senior Cabin Crew are selected because of their flexibility and in my experience go out of their way to rectify any issues wherever possible. This story does does not add up, especially as it was as simple as moving to a different seat.
CaptCufflinks From UK - England, joined Dec 2012, 78 posts, RR: 0 Reply 11, posted (4 months 3 weeks 1 day 2 hours ago) and read 4320 times:
Quoting garpd (Reply 9): "No, it's against aviation rules" they were told. The cabin crew then gave them the cold shoulder for the rest of the flight and persistently served them last.
On virtually every VS flight I have been on where there has been space, the crew always make an announcement inviting you to move around if you want to. Some of them insist you move back prior to landing, however.
Quoting StarGuy (Reply 10): Senior Cabin Crew are selected because of their flexibility and in my experience go out of their way to rectify any issues wherever possible. This story does does not add up, especially as it was as simple as moving to a different seat
I'd agree with you again here.
Moreover, on most of VS's fleet, the IFE systems can be reset on a per-seat basis by just the flick of a switch - I can't believe they wouldn't have tried this at the very least?
slinky09 From United Kingdom, joined Jun 2009, 592 posts, RR: 0 Reply 12, posted (4 months 3 weeks 1 day 2 hours ago) and read 4317 times:
Quoting garpd (Reply 9): This time one of their PTVs was not working, at first the crew didn't react to their request for help for over 3 hours. After spotting two other seats in UC were free, they asked if they could move over as they could see both PTVs were working fine. "No, it's against aviation rules" they were told. The cabin crew then gave them the cold shoulder for the rest of the flight and persistently served them last.
One couldn't say it's impossible but I've never witnessed anything close to that reaction from crew. They have portable players to offer UC passengers in this situation, on one occasion I was offered a seat in PE to be kept free when UC was full and just one film wouldn't show on my PTV. And as for that comment about "against aviation rules" that I do have to call as complete invention. VS CC are their best asset and while there are instances where things are not top notch I'm sure, this is entirely out of keeping.
Are you calling me or my friends liars? Were you there? Did you witness these transgressions?
They have never lied to me, not in the 15 years I've known them. Not so much as a little white lie. They are upfront and honest folk. Salt of the earth. If they tell me the service was crap, I believe them. They are genuinely laid back people, so laid back, they're nigh on horizontal! And trust me, if they pushed for refunds on these flights, there was warrant to do so.
shamrock350 From Ireland, joined Mar 2005, 6099 posts, RR: 15 Reply 15, posted (4 months 3 weeks 1 day 1 hour ago) and read 4063 times:
Adverts from Virgin Atlantic are designed to get people talking not to show them how far the seat reclines or how delicious the meals are, they're designed to be glossy, camp and with a touch of fantasy to create a cool, modern image surrounding the airline even if the reality is somewhat different. I'd like to think the general public will get the idea and not believe their pilots or flight attendants are superhuman!
Maybe Virgin should start making the fantasy a reality or maybe they should just start being honest in their adverts and show how they're a much smaller airline than their competitors and nowhere near as glossy as they make out. But where would the fun be in that?
1stfl94 From United Kingdom, joined May 2006, 1454 posts, RR: 0 Reply 17, posted (4 months 3 weeks 1 day ago) and read 4010 times:
As flashy as the new video is, I actually think the background video is a much better ad for Virgin, featuring actual employees and still shows off Virgin's style and glamour.
Not sure about the slogan 'flying in the face of ordinary', smacks of trying to relive the days in the 1990s when Virgin's slogan was 'No Ordinary Airline' at which time most people would agree that it was.
longhauler From Canada, joined Mar 2004, 4275 posts, RR: 36 Reply 20, posted (4 months 3 weeks 1 day ago) and read 3938 times:
Over the decades British Airways have set the standards of some of the best airline advertising seen. It is not a surprise that Virgin Atlantic therefore sees the need to address that standard.
Like all Virgin Atlantic advertising, this one is flashy bright and different. I liked it, like I like all Virgin Atlantic advertising.
Never gonna grow up, never gonna slow down .... Barefoot Blue Jean Night
If you'd have said that the crew had forgotten to reset the screen or that the cabin was full and there were no DVD players available I would believe the story, but that your friends were told by the crew that it was against aviation rules to move to a working spare seat within their booked cabin class, sounds like VS bashing nonsense. There are 7 crew members working the Upper Class cabin on the 747 including a Cabin Service Supervisor and a Flight Service Manager, and I do not believe for one second that they would all endorse this sort of treatment of an Upper Class customer, no matter how nonchalant or disinterested they may well have been on the day.
mixalakhs From Cyprus, joined Jan 2006, 32 posts, RR: 0 Reply 23, posted (4 months 3 weeks 5 hours ago) and read 1690 times:
I flew the route LHR-LAX-LAH Premium Economy with Virgin Atlantic and the overall service was horrible.
As I am traveling twice a year to the US, in my opinion the best overall airline for me is Air France.
I will avoid Virgin Atlantic unless their service gets better.
RWA380 From United States of America, joined Feb 2005, 2159 posts, RR: 4 Reply 25, posted (4 months 2 weeks 6 days 20 hours ago) and read 1376 times:
Quoting garpd (Reply 14): If they tell me the service was crap,
Crap is a very subjective word, what may be crap to me, may not be crap with others. I agree with the masses, there is way more to the story, if as a UC passenger they were not allowed to move seats in the same cabin because of broken AVOD there was another reason that they did not understand.
Sorry, no one has called you a liar, but you relayed the story, and since you were not there either, only your friends and the VS cabin crew know for sure what happened, and I'd bet that if each individual that was present that day, was interviewed separately, there would be various versions of the same story.
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