Email from VA says flight will be operated by Alliance

[Percy Bottle]

A week before my booked flight, I received an email from Virgin Australia stating...

We wish to inform you that your upcoming flight from Brisbane to Adelaide will be operated by Alliance Airlines on behalf of Virgin Australia. Alliance Airlines will operate this flight using a Fokker jet.​

My wife, who was included in the same booking also got the same email. The message gave details of what was and wasn't changing (no food and presumably no extra leg room) and suggested we contact the Guest Contact Centre if we wanted to change our flight. I did that, and the service agent said "at this stage, the flight is still a 737 being operated by VA. You might want to ring back in a couple of days to verify." In spite of the email stating "your flight ... will be operated", the agent assured us it was only a "may be operated".

What's with that? Anyone experienced the same thing, or an actual change to their flight?

 

[AIRwin]

What aircraft is showing for the same flight if you do a dummy booking on the VA website?

 

[Percy Bottle]

What aircraft is showing for the same flight if you do a dummy booking on the VA website?

Sorry, I guess I didn't finish the story. The VA website did show a 737 in the booked flight details and the flight was unchanged. We made it home on the 737 like normal. It just seems crazy that we got this email at all. And we know some others did too, because we queried it on checking into the lounge and the attendant said someone else had mentioned it.

 

[MarkD]

I would go out of my way to get on the Fokker over a 737.

 

[kyle]

I would go out of my way to get on the Fokker over a 737.

But I've been one of those Alliance aircrafts and the interior was like ancient

 

[Atleastonce]

This happened to me a few weeks ago, Brisbane to Adelaide, and we still flew on a virgin aircraft with our original economy x seats. Weird!

 

[HS-TQE]

Had a similar email on a BNE-TSV leisure run booked in EconomyX displaying that it would be 'Alliance operated' on a F100 two months back. Subsequently got a all-Y 73G moved from Row 4 to Row 2.

 

[scratchyratface]

Had an email before the VA flight from BNE to ADL last Sunday, saying that the flight was being run by Alliance. We got on a Fokker plane with Alliance, heaps of legroom (like Economy X) but the interior was really old and air con was blowing a gale.

 

[MarkD]

But I've been one of those Alliance aircrafts and the interior was like ancient

And to me thats part of the appeal. Kind of Nostalgic, many years on F28s and these things bring back memories. Love the Fokkers, noisy, rattly little pocket rockets

 

[kyle]

And to me thats part of the appeal. Kind of Nostalgic, many years on F28s and these things bring back memories. Love the Fokkers, noisy, rattly little pocket rockets

And throughout the trip I was hoping it's not going to crash

 

[MarkD]

And throughout the trip I was hoping it's not going to crash

Yeah, thats generally a given on any mode of transport. Havnt heard of too many F100s crashing. Better chance of crashing your own car. What a way to go though, he was totally fokkered in that crash

 

[FlyingKangaroo]

I had a TSV-BNE run on an Airnorth E90 a few months ago. They treated the business class seats as Economy X on the flight so as Platinum I was assigned a business class seat for free. Service was otherwise the same as VA, except there was a free snack with the otherwise normal drinks service (this was also the case on a Link flight from SYD-CBR last year).

I'd never flown Airnorth before so it was a fun little treat.

 

[kookaburra75]

And to me thats part of the appeal. Kind of Nostalgic, many years on F28s and these things bring back memories. Love the Fokkers, noisy, rattly little pocket rockets

I too spent many years on F28's in WA and the NT, and "love" is not a term I would use to remember them by.

 

[cdp88]

Had a similar email on a BNE-TSV leisure run booked in EconomyX displaying that it would be 'Alliance operated' on a F100 two months back. Subsequently got an all-Y 73G moved from Row 4 to Row 2.

I’m heading to ADL in July doing a bit of status run as well as spending some time, first the first time, in ADL.

I have J on a 737 on way down ($550 business for 80SC seemed a good deal) but for timing reasons had to choose Fokker on way back (VA1393 on 25/7). Given there are two of us I’m fine with the 2+3 configuration of seats.

Question is where are the economy x seats? I paid for economy x on way back to sit in row 11 but looking at seat map it now looks like only row 12 is economy x. Should I just cancel the economy x or ask to be moved?

 

[Harrison_133]

Question is where are the economy x seats? I paid for economy x on way back to sit in row 11 but looking at seat map it now looks like only row 12 is economy x. Should I just cancel the economy x or ask to be moved?

Row 11 and 12 are both Economy X seats on the Alliance Fokkers, so you’d still have the extra legroom seat if you remain in row 11. Is row 11 maybe fully occupied, so it’s now grey and not purple on the seat map?

 

[cdp88]

Row 11 and 12 are both Economy X seats on the Alliance Fokkers, so you’d still have the extra legroom seat if you remain in row 11. Is row 11 maybe fully occupied, so it’s now grey and not purple on the seat map?

Thanks Harrison. That may well be it, they were definitely showing as economy x when I did seat selection and paid the additional $44. I can’t manage seat selection on this booking but when I looked at the seat map for the cabin generally it only showed row 12 as economy x.

 

[Harrison_133]

I can’t manage seat selection on this booking but when I looked at the seat map for the cabin generally it only showed row 12 as economy x.

I tried a dummy booking with the flight details you provided above. 11E/F/G are still vacant and showing as Economy X. You should be all good.

 

[HeavyElectricity]

Fokker leg room in standard seats is amazing in any case

 

[cdp88]

I have now received the email asking me to call the contact centre - my BNE-ADL flight is now on the Fokker too. I called them up and they offered to refund the fare difference and put me on the same time as a direct flight. I’m not keen on that option as it was a very cheap business fare and I wanted the SC.

I worked through a few options, rejecting a 7am and 7pm departure on the same day for direct flights in J. I was eventually offered J flights via SYD.

I’m still mulling over my options as the indirect routing is a bit inconvenient although it would maximise my SC and this was the objective (in addition to visiting the wonderful city of Adelaide). Do people think I would get the full SC of the separate BNE-SYD and SYD-ADL flights in this case should I ask for indirect routing?

 

[AIRwin]

I worked through a few options, rejecting a 7am and 7pm departure on the same day for direct flights in J. I was eventually offered J flights via SYD.

Any options via MEL which would earn even more status credits than SYD?