Introducing Virgin Blue's new A330 Service

[LiamR]

Typo?


Economy

• 251 economy seats / 30 rows / 6 seats per row

If it’s 2-4-2 that’s 8 seats right?

Thats a very generous Economy Class!!

 

[lovestotravel]

There are ex Emirates planes so not sure why people are thinking they have suddenly put the V Australia IFE on them

$1399 is the $10 cheaper than Qantas....
Free limo transfers only for the first 2 months

Not sure what there is to be excited about really.

 

[spaceboi]

http://www.virginblue.com.au/cms/groups/e-commerce/documents/internetcontent/p_015183.gifView attachment 1968

2x3x2 except for the first row!

Cheers

The new A330 J seating is also listed
If you click on the economy tab you'll also see the new A330 Y seats (they look the part and have a decent seat width).

A330 Economy

Features:

Luxury leather
Over 30 inch (75 cm) seat pitch
Over 18 inch (45 cm) seat width

http://www.virginblue.com.au/Personal/Flightinfo/CabinClasses/Economy/index.htm

A330 In Flight Entertainment is also listed
A330-Entertainment | Virgin Blue

 

[samh004]

There are ex Emirates planes so not sure why people are thinking they have suddenly put the V Australia IFE on them

$1399 is the $10 cheaper than Qantas....
Free limo transfers only for the first 2 months

Not sure what there is to be excited about really.

It’s about real competition, while yes, it’s not a lot cheaper, it is an additional product that can compete on the same level as QF J on that route. It’s also the hope that these seats will be making their way to other domestic services in the future, really giving a shake-up the the J market.

For any status pax I’m sure all this fanfare is actually very bad, as it means booking a cheapo Y seat probably wont result in an upgrade, as the cabin will be full

Just thought, with all the black leather seats, the side of the plane with sun streaming in through the windows is going to have some very hot seats when the pax get onboard

 

[anat0l]

Nice pricing with a good cut under QF.

Trying to be savvy, I tried to get onto the Velocity website to look for awards. No luck - points only cost is very high (much higher than QF, which has got me thinking 'you've got to be kidding me') or points+cash cost also quite ridiculous. I guess they were smart in making sure there is no award inventory yet until things settle down. But even on non-333 flights the PE cost is the same, and quite not worth it at all.

In any case, these opening specials are quite good. A shame I don't have $2800 lying around, let alone $1400, otherwise it looks quite tempting to try! (On the other hand, had there been points awards and if my last credit with Velocity had been processed by now...)

Interesting that the cabin layout is 2-3-2 except for first row. This basically mirrors JQ Star Class, although due to sizing dynamics it could be better than Star Class. Of course, for those that expressed much scorn against QF's decision to put 2-3-2 in their domestic 330s, they should feel right at home, minus the brickbats.

What kind of breakfast does QF J get on the red eye ex-PER? If DJ are offering hot breakfast on such a route and QF aren't, that's a definite plus. I suppose DJ will also roll out (on both directions) their new "Dream Packs" (or whatever it was called - the amenity kits...)

 

[markis10]

There are ex Emirates planes so not sure why people are thinking they have suddenly put the V Australia IFE on them

$1399 is the $10 cheaper than Qantas....
Free limo transfers only for the first 2 months

Not sure what there is to be excited about really.

1. There is real competition to which QF have already reacted to for the benefit of all
2. Launch pricing is never indicative of market forces, give it a few months before looking at the trend
3. The ex emirates planes have hardly come of service for them and gone straight into the DJ flights, there was time for a change to be made but it may be delayed to ensure all aircraft get the same treatment, rogue aircraft are not ideal!
4. Strangely QF have a special at the moment on J to PER, funny that, for flghts were the specials are gone its a much bigger delta:

5. Two J flights with QF will still mean you are a long way from SG.

 

[pshepvic]

Thats a very generous Economy Class!!

Better that Business!

 

[LiamR]

A330-Entertainment | Virgin Blue

Without getting carried away..... If you select the Music Tab on the page above. The word 'Red' is in bold at the top. Am I just going crazy or could that be a hint?

 

[spaceboi]

I would be very suprised if it wasen't RED, however I agree with your point saying it would have been widely publicised, they seem to be just saying the good bits at the moment, not saying anything else.

Does anyone know what IFE the EK aircraft have? I'm sure if it was the Panasonic system, or something close, a quick software update for re-branding is all that is needed.

When on the A330 entertainment page, if you click the 3rd tab (music) the bolded header reads "RED".... just saying

A330 Entertainment

 

[LiamR]

When on the A330 entertainment page, if you click the 3rd tab (music) the bolded header reads "RED".... just saying

A330 Entertainment

Hehehe, Beat you!

*Has been flying Virgin too much, I'm starting to be childish and make silly jokes..... Quick, back to QF*

 

[samh004]

Hehehe, Beat you!

*Has been flying Virgin too much, I'm starting to be childish and make silly jokes..... Quick, back to QF*

Congrats on 100 posts Liam!

Now you’re a Member.

Seems there are a few inconsistencies on the pages they’ve put online, so anything is possible I’d say

 

[kamchatsky]

Good to see DJ offering J services, but I suspect it would be tough fight with QF on this, especially given their current cash position. Once they get J services rolled out everywhere in Australia then it would be easier. But at the moment they do need bums on seats on these A330 services to make it all viable.

 

[markis10]

It’s about real competition, while yes, it’s not a lot cheaper, it is an additional product that can compete on the same level as QF J on that route.

$516 bucks is a lot cheaper for one way flight in my books for J when all you can get is the normal QF fare, and the Y fare is close to half the $265 baseline for QF.

 

[spaceboi]

Hehehe, Beat you!

*Has been flying Virgin too much, I'm starting to be childish and make silly jokes..... Quick, back to QF*

missed it byyyyy that much......... :mrgreen:

 

[pshepvic]

What kind of breakfast does QF J get on the red eye ex-PER? If DJ are offering hot breakfast on such a route and QF aren't, that's a definite plus.

On the DJ site it says Continental Breakfast for the Red Eye unfortunately...

 

[anat0l]

On the DJ site it says Continental Breakfast for the Red Eye unfortunately...

I suppose such a short flight many people may not want a heavy meal. Same reasoning going around the place, even on international airlines.

 

[dizperliz]

QF J cabin service on red eye:
Supper post take off,
Prior to landing, juice/water/coffee/tea service with sweet short bread biscuit. No one seems to eat on landing.

 

[anat0l]

QF J cabin service on red eye:
Supper post take off,
Prior to landing, juice/water/coffee/tea service with sweet short bread biscuit. No one seems to eat on landing.

No one may seem to eat but that's still a poor show from QF for J. At least roll out some banana bread with spiced apricots, or fruit bowls with yoghurt.

 

[lovestotravel]

I wish DJ all the best with this, but given the current climate of high oil prices I think they are going to need it and with QF throwing everything at DJ

I am not sure what I was expecting but simply re-launching an ex-Emirates product has kinda let me down I guess....

Also I am sure they won't be putting the same type of seats in the 737's, not with that seat pitch I am assuming ?

Instead of all these teasers, I think it would be better to hit the market with everything at once.

New Livery
New IFE on all aircraft. Announce what is happening and by when
New Seating on all aircraft. Announce what is happening and by when
Business class rollout, as per above, on all aircraft and by when.
Full expansion of A330's or 787's or whatever they want to use for East-West coast flights. having 2 or 3 or 4 A330's so you have a mis-match of fights doesn't help.

We are constantly fed little bits of information and I guess by the end of June we'll know all!

Free limo transfers and that for now are just gimmicks, most corporates/business can just charge back taxi/limo/hire car transfers back to the company anyway. At least I do So having this included makes no difference to me and lots of others I assume. Also after mid-July it means nothing.

At the moment we have 737's some with Live2Air and some without, 2 Ex Emirates A330's and 2 others (from memory) which should have the new seating for DJ. A full consistent launch would be better I feel.

We shall see what happens in the next few months with pricing and offerings and final announcements.

I am just impatient :evil:

 

[Globetrotter]

Instead of all these teasers, I think it would be better to hit the market with everything at once.

New Livery
New IFE on all aircraft. Announce what is happening and by when
New Seating on all aircraft. Announce what is happening and by when
Business class rollout, as per above, on all aircraft and by when.
Full expansion of A330's or 787's or whatever they want to use for East-West coast flights. having 2 or 3 or 4 A330's so you have a mis-match of fights doesn't help.

We are constantly fed little bits of information and I guess by the end of June we'll know all!

I am just impatient :evil:

I totally agree with you. The whole rebranding roll-out is boring. Do it properly or not at all. I am so bored with DJ's strategy of feeding us small segments of their rebranding (menu changes, half painted planes, interviews with hints of possible names, ra ra ra I am over it. It's not a corporate approach considering they want more 'corporate' business. :evil: