when are the new business seats coming???

[haggiscat]

greetings, listers,

I used to be a dedicated Virgin Blue flyer and would do about 24 domestic flights a year with them. They were cheap, friendly and the lounge was fun. I still do 24 flights a year but now with QANTAS. The Q fares became as competitive as some of the Virgin fares, and so with the full service and CityFlyer free booze it was a no brainer. This year I have almost exclusively flown J class on QANTAS. But I think it's overrated and the price does not represent value for money. Better than Y, but still price gouging.

The point is, I'm waiting for Virgin J class. Waiting, waiting, waiting. And I want to know when I can expect to find most planes in the fleet with the business configuration. I have flights to book in the next six months and if I know that there will be J seats available, I will book them with Virgin Australia for a change. If VA keeps drip feeding information that promises much and delivers little, I will stick with Qantas.

Some dates, chaps, some dates. I know there are people on here who work for Virgin who must have the answers.

 

[Jack Melon]

greetings, listers,

I used to be a dedicated Virgin Blue flyer and would do about 24 domestic flights a year with them. They were cheap, friendly and the lounge was fun. I still do 24 flights a year but now with QANTAS. The Q fares became as competitive as some of the Virgin fares, and so with the full service and CityFlyer free booze it was a no brainer. This year I have almost exclusively flown J class on QANTAS. But I think it's overrated and the price does not represent value for money. Better than Y, but still price gouging.

The point is, I'm waiting for Virgin J class. Waiting, waiting, waiting. And I want to know when I can expect to find most planes in the fleet with the business configuration. I have flights to book in the next six months and if I know that there will be J seats available, I will book them with Virgin Australia for a change. If VA keeps drip feeding information that promises much and delivers little, I will stick with Qantas.

Some dates, chaps, some dates. I know there are people on here who work for Virgin who must have the answers.

Hey! Business class will be on the majority of the fleet by the end of the year. The cabins will re rapidly re-configured to introduce Business class and the new economy class product. The A330's already have business class to buy, 5 737-800's currently flying around with business class, lucky to get them when purchasing "premium" fare type to get those seats, but not the full business class service. So by the end of they year Business class seats will be available to purchase. The E190 fleet will be undergoing re-fit after the 737's. I think re configuring starts September/October. Some AFF's and my self believe around this time is when the new IFE will be announced so they can install it when re-fitting goes under way. Cheers.

 

[LiamR]

Hi haggiscat,

The way it has been explained to me is as follows:

Virgin currently have around 5 new aircraft in the new config. This will slowly increase over the next few months as new aircraft come online.

Virgin are looking at refreshing their current aircraft (New Paint, New Seats inside, J Cabin...) in-house at a faculty in Brisbane. It's all built and ready to go (AFAIK) however, they are waiting for the government authorities to approve it.

Once they have the green light, they will be churning out between one and three new aircraft per week.

At the moment, there really isn't a business class cabin. If you get a BSI aircraft (those that are in the new colours) you'll be sitting in Business class, with premium economy service.

The business class product is expected to launch before the end of the year. (Yes, I know everybody keeps saying that)

Hope this helps!

 

[Saab34]

Hey! Business class will be on the majority of the fleet by the end of the year. The cabins will re rapidly re-configured to introduce Business class and the new economy class product. The A330's already have business class to buy, 5 737-800's currently flying around with business class, lucky to get them when purchasing "premium" fare type to get those seats, but not the full business class service. So by the end of they year Business class seats will be available to purchase. The E190 fleet will be undergoing re-fit after the 737's. I think re configuring starts September/October. Some AFF's and my self believe around this time is when the new IFE will be announced so they can install it when re-fitting goes under way. Cheers.

Are you the same Jack Melon that keeps writing cough on VA's facebook page by any chance, pretending to work for them when your just a kid?

Your posts are nothing but pure speculation and "guessing" based on recent events. I would be careful what you write because you have no link to the company aside from your general interest in them.

Just Sayin!

 

[markis10]

greetings, listers,

The point is, I'm waiting for Virgin J class. Waiting, waiting, waiting. And I want to know when I can expect to find most planes in the fleet with the business configuration. I have flights to book in the next six months and if I know that there will be J seats available

Firstly whats a lister , is it someone who lists from one airline to another?


On a more serious note, I dont expect DJ to announce when they will bring in product, the drip feeding is to allow for plans to be put in place, modifications to be made etc and to keep the competition guessing. What it does present is an opportunity for you to save money, put simply if you book PE now for 6 months time, whats the chances you get J but at PE pricing (look at SYD-PER to see what I mean). Having sat in the DJ J 737 seat, they are perfectly adequete and more than comparable to the competition offering, I suspect the real difference will be in the soft product, that is the service/food and IFE

 

[Noob]

Are you the same Jack Melon that keeps writing cough on VA's facebook page by any chance, pretending to work for them when your just a kid?

Your posts are nothing but pure speculation and "guessing" based on recent events. I would be careful what you write because you have no link to the company aside from your general interest in them.

Just Sayin!

1) He has never claimed he works for VA
2) He has never claimed anything he has said is anything other than speculation
3) I know for a fact that VA appreciates his input online as they posted his name on twitter as one of their "Online Favorite People"

 

[haggiscat]

Well I might start pre-booking from March onwards. There was some speculation about what the fares would be like. IMO, Qantas domestic business fares are extortionate and who needs the extra service anyway, really? Last time I flew, in a full cabin, the Purser insisted on doing a full formal meal service, very slowly asking each passenger what he wanted for dinner and bringing out meals individually. Total waste of time on a short flight with a full cabin and meant I was literally finishing my last mouthful as descent began with no time for another drink. I'd be happy for good cabin seating, a light meal quickly served, and an efficient drinks service. No reason the prices shouldn't be substantially lower too.

 

[Noob]

Well I might start pre-booking from March onwards. There was some speculation about what the fares would be like. IMO, Qantas domestic business fares are extortionate and who needs the extra service anyway, really? Last time I flew, in a full cabin, the Purser insisted on doing a full formal meal service, very slowly asking each passenger what he wanted for dinner and bringing out meals individually. Total waste of time on a short flight with a full cabin and meant I was literally finishing my last mouthful as descent began with no time for another drink. I'd be happy for good cabin seating, a light meal quickly served, and an efficient drinks service. No reason the prices shouldn't be substantially lower too.

Well if the new Virgin A330 Business class is anything to go by you're in for a full three course meal separately served with silver service...And don't forget the signature "Australian" coughtail and nibbles before hand!

I for one hope this is the case for the rest of the fleet, along with the separate chrome trolley for post dinner drinks and deserts.

 

[Saab34]

Whats the service on the A330 SYD-MEL?

 

[LiamR]

Whats the service on the A330 SYD-MEL?

Standard 737 PE service. Pick anything you want off the menu. However the normally carry hot food items that would normally only be on flights of 2hrs or longer. Such as the Luke Mangan Pie.