Thank you from everyone at Virgin Australia

[Virgin Australia]

To the AFF collective!

From everyone at Virgin Australia, we'd like to offer our festive seasons greetings and hope you are all enjoying some sort of break.

2011 has been an incredible year for us, and one where we have undergone massive change.

Just 238 days ago, on May 4th, we became Virgin Australia (ending months of AFF speculation - wasn't that fun!) with changes including:

• New aircraft, with our first Airbus, the A330, as well as 737 with Boeing Sky Interior, and then our first turbo-props, the ATR72's.
• New uniforms for flight, cabin and ground crew.
• New Lounges, in Melbourne and Brisbane, then just recently in Mackay.
• The Premium Entry in Sydney was a special revelation for our frequent flyers!
• New alliances with Etihad, Air New Zealand, Delta and now Singapore Airlines are all now in place (with a little bit more paperwork to be completed ie available on the IBE)
• A new fare structure was put in place with Premium, Flexi and Saver fares.
• New offerings of food and beverage were offered on board.
• Our Frequent Flyer program, Velocity, was reborn with added benefits such as family pooling and maternity leave.
• Other new products have been implemented such as Priority Checkin, Priority Boarding, and Priority Baggage.
• We rebranded our international airlines, to come under the one brand, we also begun a new airline with Virgin Samoa.
• We also rebuilt our website from the ground up.
• A new cabin, Business Class, begins across the network from January 18th.

Certainly a lot to do in such a short amount of time!

We still have a long way to go, we know this, but listening to our frequent flyers is a key element to our improvement.

At some point, you have all contributed some form of feedback, (some constructive, some not so!) it has all been taken in by the team for future reference. For taking the time to provide that feedback, we thank you.

Here's to 2012 and our continued change, growth and improvement!

[video=youtube_share;Mb9Nff44Qqc]http://youtu.be/Mb9Nff44Qqc[/video]

This is a video we have produced that we think sums up that transformation!

Note: the social media team working on AFF are on a break until early January

 

[Keith009]

Phew! When it's been outlined like that, 2011 was indeed a massive (even this doesn't even begin to cover it!) year!

Note: the social media team working on AFF are on a break until early January

Lucky for some!

 

[Major]

Have a good break.

You deserve it after all the changes.

 

[Noob]

Hope you all have a great break, ready for an exciting 2012!

 

[LiamR]

I'd like to say thanks to everybody at Virgin Australia (espically the Social Media Team) for all the hard work you've done over the past year.

crazydave98 convinced me to try Virgin Blue back in Janurary and it's been great watching the airline change since then, I can honestly say you've really provided a viable alternative to Qantas in fresh and modern way. Personally, I nolonger have to drive up to Brisbane just to catch a flight, it's saved me countless hours being able to have a much better experience out of Gold Coast.

Thank you and bring on Jan 18!

Note: the social media team working on AFF are on a break until early January

A much deserved break!

 

[MadFairlane]

Have a good break!

Many of these changes are why I am booking my US trip with you guys.

 

[aus_flyer]

In a video that's meant to be all about the 'change' to Virgin Australia.... why would you include shots of ground staff wearing Virgin Blue branding?

 

[dfcatch]

Thanks VA

Rest assured that I'm sure the AFF collective will continue to provide as much feedback in 2012 as you care to absorb.

 

[Noob]

In a video that's meant to be all about the 'change' to Virgin Australia.... why would you include shots of ground staff wearing Virgin Blue branding?

I think it is to show the transition.

 

[Timba-Jet]

At some point, you have all contributed some form of feedback, (some constructive, some not so!)

Hehee, so true!

Congrats on all your achievements in 2011. Look forward to an exciting 2012.

 

[Reg Reagan]

Congrats on a big year of positive changes. Enjoy the break & see you in the new year!

 

[TonyHancock]

If someone had told me, back in January, that I would be flying VA in 2011 I would have laughed at them.

Mainly through reading about VA here on AFF and then pursuing the status match when the new FF program was launched I find myself only a few bookings away from retaining WP with VA. I have my first VA J trip into LHR to look forward too. (Codeshare with Etihad.)

So far I have been impressed, since August I have been to the MEL, SYD, BNE and PER lounges, I have experienced priority boarding and excellent seat choices, and more than anything I have enjoyed my interactions with VA staff and crew.

What I really like is the VA approach to continuous improvement. There seems to be an underlying attitude that things can and should be better. It is very impressive.

I'm looking forward to more travel on VA in 2012 so thanks to the VA peeps here on AFF for the regular input, and thanks for the status match.

 

[Sprucegoose]

Yes a good effort guys. The qantas problems came at the right time for you. The status match was the single best deft move to reposition yourself from a perceived LCC to a credible alternative to qantas. Matching and exceeding service leves and market response will make 2012 a better year for you.

Qantas says the International arm is losing money, so the response was to cut out the cancer, in simple terms. What no one has discussed is how symbiotic the domestic and international relationship is. A lot of domestic traffic is generated from the international business. A very simple analysis that VA are recognizing with their new relationships, especially SQ.


Good luck guys and a happy prosperous 2012 to you all.

 

[Deleted member 29185]

I'll add my best wishes for 2012 as well.

2011 saw some wonderful changes.....and some absolute balls-ups (the IFF&B and IFE being two that spring to mind). I hope you manage more of the former and fewer of the later for 2012, but as you say, there are plenty of players on AFF who'll throw you both bouquets and brickbats as the mood demands but hey...all feedback is positive feedback if used well.

I look forward to the progression in 2012, so have a nice break and see you next year!

 

[DSFlyer]

Big thank you to all at Virgin Australia for the way you have interacted with AFF members and the people who fly with you. I look forward to seeing even further changes in 2012 and enjoying all the benefits and changes that have been implemented in 2011 during my flying in 2012.

Have a great break.

 

[Jane-Doe]

Yes a good effort guys. The qantas problems came at the right time for you. The status match was the single best deft move to reposition yourself from a perceived LCC to a credible alternative to qantas. Matching and exceeding service leves and market response will make 2012 a better year for you.

Qantas says the International arm is losing money, so the response was to cut out the cancer, in simple terms. What no one has discussed is how symbiotic the domestic and international relationship is. A lot of domestic traffic is generated from the international business. A very simple analysis that VA are recognizing with their new relationships, especially SQ.


Good luck guys and a happy prosperous 2012 to you all.

The status match was brilliant. I switched my family over to Velocity and after one (large) international business trip worth of points, they are all Gold Velocity. That plus my status match Platinum makes a Qantas flight unlikely to happen.

Congratulations to Velocity/Virgin.

 

[Rotation]

Congratulations on an amazing year!

I had the pleasure of flying MEL-LAX-MEL this year on (then) V Australia and it completely solidified why I choose Virgin Australia - a fantastic experience.

As other posters have mentioned, the focus on continuous improvement should never be undervalued, and the staff on the front line have always been friendly and fun.

Looking forward to many more improvements and innovations in 2012.

Cheers!