Virgin Blue announcements 26/08

[markis10]

DJ are not getting EK birds, so I am not sure why we are discussing the cabin!

 

[mannej]

IIRC its a very much regional type set up (well that was the feeling that I got).

It may be adequate for AU Domestic, but as you said, people like shiny new toys!

 

[DJ737]

DJ are not getting EK birds, so I am not sure why we are discussing the cabin!

The A330's are being leased from BOC Aviation who have 5 new build 330's on order.

Cheers
DJ737

 

[dajop]

DJ are not getting EK birds, so I am not sure why we are discussing the cabin!

I guess as usual it's nonews leading everyone up the garden path...

 

[mannej]

I guess as usual it's nonews leading everyone up the garden path...

I should have known to check my sources

 

[pauly7]

I am more interested to see what DJ will be doing up the pointy end of the bus.
.

Yes same, but to really get serious with business they need to muscle up Velocity and their lounge access.

Personally I think the next gen QF product is all you really need for domestic J.

I would rather DJ put in a decent match of this (rather than go OTT on domestic seat hardware) and concentrate their $ on pricing, fixing/status matching Velocity, fixing catering, getting rid of Live2air in favor of AVOD and improving/adding lounges...

I mean do we really need much more than the new domestic next gen product??

 

[anat0l]

Yes same, but to really get serious with business they need to muscle up Velocity and their lounge access.

Personally I think the next gen QF product is all you really need for domestic J.

I would rather DJ put in a decent match of this (rather than go OTT on domestic seat hardware) and concentrate their $ on pricing, fixing/status matching Velocity, fixing catering, getting rid of Live2air in favor of AVOD and improving/adding lounges...

I mean do we really need much more than the new domestic next gen product??

The "next gen" QF domestic J product (the one fitted on some A332s that do PER CityFlyers) may be adequate for such a flight, but sometimes adequacy is something which people do not consider more than "latest and greatest".

PER flights can be between 3-5 hrs in length. Intra-Asia flights can consist of such length of flights with a much superior product. Some would also believe that domestic F services in the USA by USA-based carriers also blows the QF product out of the water.

In the end, if DJ comes up with a very good domestic J product against the QF PER CityFlyer product, even if the QF J product is "adequate" there will be a serious run for money game going on here and QF just might lose. Flat beds on these services may be OTT, but whatever glamour you need to win customers....

 

[samh004]

Yes same, but to really get serious with business they need to muscle up Velocity and their lounge access.

Personally I think the next gen QF product is all you really need for domestic J.

I would rather DJ put in a decent match of this (rather than go OTT on domestic seat hardware) and concentrate their $ on pricing, fixing/status matching Velocity, fixing catering, getting rid of Live2air in favor of AVOD and improving/adding lounges...

I mean do we really need much more than the new domestic next gen product??

I flew Pac blue today from SYD and wasn’t overly impressed. I’ll highlight my morning and ask a few questions to the air here and there.

Checkin opens 3 hours before, but when I arrived 2.5 hours before, they were still setting up and it took another 15 minutes to start checking-in the first pax, by then there was a VERY long line. Although they had about 8 desks and more staff than that, they only had 5 counters open.

I was given row 2 in the "red zone" thanks to status, as were others who either bought it or also had status, yet this was their layout of seating when the doors were finally closed:

OXO OXO
xx_ xx_
xx_ OOO

Now I’m no genius, but they could have arranged that better so everyone had a middle blocked seat (with the armrest down). And for anyone that says they might not have known if anyone was going to upgrade at checkin, they could have simply changed seats at the gate, as checkin would have closed long before.

No priority tags on luggage, and no priority boarding, so although I got to line up in a queue by myself for checkin, I had to wait till most pax had left the baggage claim before my bag arrived. Now I’m not saying QF priority baggage is perfect, but it’s always been better than this!

No international lounge.

Unlike what I have heard on domestic DJ flights lately, no free water, not that I was too bothered.

So there are issues, and so far based on today know what I’d like to see get fixed, as it simply wasn’t up to par.

That being said, I found the leather seats and recline very nice. Slept nearly all the way, very comfortably.

 

[pauly7]

In the end, if DJ comes up with a very good domestic J product against the QF PER CityFlyer product, even if the QF J product is "adequate" there will be a serious run for money game going on here and QF just might lose. Flat beds on these services may be OTT, but whatever glamour you need to win customers....

My point being that a lot seems to be focussed on the seat when in actual fact to win repeat corporate business flyers they have to really step up the ancillary services in tandem.

I'm sure they will put a bit of virgin 'flair' on the seat, just hope it doesn't dominate their thinking

They have the benefit of knowing QF's hand as QF rolls out the next gen product (new 73H's getting it too remember).. So they can try and just top it... Then focus on all the other areas where QF currently trumps them....

 

[kamchatsky]

Not sure about this, but from most people here it seems that everyone wants DJ to up their J product so that QF would lower prices so that you can get QF cheaper .... Sort of defeat the purpose. :shock:

 

[samh004]

Not sure about this, but from most people here it seems that everyone wants DJ to up their J product so that QF would lower prices so that you can get QF cheaper .... Sort of defeat the purpose. :shock:

I can understand that mentality, though I would rather DJ update their products such that I would consider them a viable alternative, as I really don’t think they’ve got it together at this stage. But that’s just me. I appreciate things take time, but you have to work towards them, you can just stall forever.

 

[lovestotravel]

If DJ think that by leasing 2 x 11 year old A330's is going to take on QF then they really still have no idea what they are doing.

So from what we know for now, they are getting 2 A330's to run from MEL/SYD to PER. That's not even enough to cover all the flights, and when one goes tech, a nice swap to a narrow body or a long wait for a fix.

Yes it's a start but they need at least 10 x A330's for now and then B787's in the future.

Getting 2, 11 year old ex Emirates A330's is a pretty poor effort.

If you are serious about this, when the business product is launched you had better be explaining what flights, and how many more A330's or 787's that will be coming and how fast. You are not going to crack the corporate market with 2 A330's!


Given the on-going failures of V Australia, DJ really still have no idea what they are doing. I will re-cap their great ideas that have failed with VA.

First batch of annoyed customers:
Announcing MEL-LAX (non-stop) then sacking/cancelling the contract for the MEL ground staff before the launch. Yet still selling tickets for these flights for weeks and weeks, and then contacting customers to change to them to SYD/BNE to LAX flight.

Second batch of annoyed customers:
Changing flight times to an evening arrival into LAX, people had booked on-wards flights and now won't make the connections.

Third batch of annoyed customers:
Changing flight times back to a morning/lunch arrival at LAX (Which it should have ALWAYS been) People have hotels booked at LAX and now have wasted $$ here.

So it seems they have sorted out that people want to arrive at LAX earlier in the day to make connections. Yet QF/UA/DL/NZ worked this out years ago, oh wait the reason they changed the flights to a PM arrive.

To fly a 77W to coughet and Fiji. That's a great idea right there! Let's send a "huge" and "heavy" jet that has a premium product to a leisure destination that is competing with Jetstar... Yep that was going to work..... :shock:

So yep, they cancel these flights and realise that a 777W is not suited to these routes.... Well done again!

Okay, so the latest bird-brain idea is to fly to Abu Dhabi.... Couple of times a week from SYD and couple of times a week from BNE. Oh yes Emirates has ALOT more connections and flights and will be pumping the A380's shortly to compete.

A380 vs B777W..... I know which I would pick!

DJ/VA or whoever is running the show, needs to focus on the USA and ATTEMPT to make a profit from these flights.

All they have done since Day 1 is frustrate, ignore and irritate many many customers with their changing schedules and flights. Recently I have heard that they have modified the flight times INTO LAX AGAIN!

Yet they wonder why business customers wont' fly them and leisure travellers are flying on United.

They have a great hard product, SOME great crew, and I wish them all the best, but when they constantly fail on such simple tasks, I really have to wonder!

 

[samh004]

Getting 2, 11 year old ex Emirates A330's is a pretty poor effort.

You’ve failed to read the thread. They’re getting new A330’s from BOC Aviation!!

 

[lovestotravel]

Not sure about this, but from most people here it seems that everyone wants DJ to up their J product so that QF would lower prices so that you can get QF cheaper .... Sort of defeat the purpose. :shock:

Well that's all that is really going to happen!

Qantas will just lower the price and keep the customers!

Same as they have done on the USA route!

VA are bleeding $$$ as they have to keep dropping prices both in Business class and down the back.

Qantas can afford to do this, VA cannot!

I wonder how much DJ want to bleed domestically as well.

 

[lovestotravel]

You’ve failed to read the thread. They’re getting new A330’s from BOC Aviation!!

Correct, just catching up on that!

I would like to see this officially announced first though!

That being said...2 aircraft................ Please.

I forgot to add the other wonderful choices DJ/VA have made:
E170's
777W to South Africa - Wrong plane, wrong destination again

Fail!

 

[pauly7]

Given the on-going failures of V Australia, DJ really still have no idea what they are doing. I will re-cap their great ideas that have failed with VA.

First batch of annoyed customers:
Announcing MEL-LAX (non-stop) then sacking/cancelling the contract for the MEL ground staff before the launch. Yet still selling tickets for these flights for weeks and weeks, and then contacting customers to change to them to SYD/BNE to LAX flight.

Let's be fair, a lot of these people were re- booked by Virgin onto the brand new QF A380 so actually got a great deal!

 

[samh004]

Well that's all that is really going to happen!

Qantas will just lower the price and keep the customers!

Same as they have done on the USA route!

VA are bleeding $$$ as they have to keep dropping prices both in Business class and down the back.

Qantas can afford to do this, VA cannot!

I wonder how much DJ want to bleed domestically as well.

Eventually something has to give. Giving up and pulling out of routes (which they’re doing) or not even bothering to start new ones/expend services isn’t going to help them get anywhere. At least with the flights to Abu Dhabi, QF isn’t flying there, so they can get the foothold there and build it up.

You speak as if you want them to just pack it in and close up shop, then what?

 

[anat0l]

...

OXO OXO
xx_ xx_
xx_ OOO

Now I’m no genius, but they could have arranged that better so everyone had a middle blocked seat (with the armrest down).

Aaah yes... they could have, but then again they basically gave those two obnoxious LOTFAPians you were talking about the entire row 1 (i.e. full spread over two seats, each). So no more spare seat block for everyone else. They could utilise 3DEF but one person is still going to "miss out".

With it all said and done, people could've just moved after cruise?

I guess with Velocity Gold it would be nice to get a middle block, although you might have to sit further back to achieve that.

No international lounge.

The Virgin group of Australia should build a Clubhouse here! Seriously!

 

[lovestotravel]

Let's be fair, a lot of these people were re- booked by Virgin onto the brand new QF A380 so actually got a great deal!

Indeed - I know of three families who this happened to!

Guess what... They now will only fly Qantas on the A380!

 

[anat0l]

Let's be fair, a lot of these people were re- booked by Virgin onto the brand new QF A380 so actually got a great deal!

The pax got a great deal, VA not so much (having to pay QF for the space to put their pax on their planes).

I've heard of pax booking fares in hope of an equipment swap (e.g. the old SQ 747 F Saver swap to 388 Suite trick), but this is off the planet.