I used to be a big fan of Virgin and would choose to fly with them to the USA whenever possible however my last trip with them will definitely be my last ever on the GatwickLas Vegas route.
Check in at Gatwick was fine. Virgin always have long lines for economy check-in so I'd allowed plenty of time so wasn't stressed to have to wait. I had pre-reserved my seat so everything was very straightforward and boarding started on time. So far so good. I had selected a seat in the smaller forward cabin but upon reaching my aisle seat I saw the window seat as occupied by a small thin man in his sixties and the middle seat by his HUGE wife ! This lady looked very uncomfortable indeed and was spilling over into the seats on either side. I was left with about three quarters
of my seat to squeeze into. It struck me she was the last person to be put into a middle seat and I felt very sorry for her. We chatted and she was a lovely lady. The flight attendents were moving passengers around and some extra seats in economy became available so I suggested to the flight attendent that she moved me to give all three of us more comfort (done tactfully of course). She agreed it would be better and moved me into the main cabin and the lady in the middle seat thanked me. Well what a mistake that was !! Virgin's Gatwick Vegas flight is a popular choice with stag groups as it is a direct flight and unlike the US carriers serve alcohol for free. This isn't usually a problem as usually Virgin seat the stag group together at the back of the plane so any noise and disruption are kept to one area and doesn't usually disturb other passengers-but not on today's flight !! This group of 50 were scattered throughout the main cabin-maybe someone at check-in was working on the divide and conquer theory-but it didn't work. The group were wobbling up and down the aisles constantly-grabbing hold of seats and even other passengers to keep upright as they visited their buddies in other parts of the plane. They had boarded drunk and continued to drink. They were very loud and getting drunker and drunker. Quite intimidating when trapped inside a narrow metal tube with them for the next nine hours. I'm no prude-I've worked in pubs but my idea of of pleasent flight is not to have the back of my seat grabbed by passing lurching drunks or to endure shouted conversations where every other word began with F or C ! There were children on the flight-and I felt for the parents. I spoke to a flight attendent who agreed it was a very unpleasent flight but the purser had already said she would not speak to them and ask them to stay in their seats or moderate their language as another passenger had already asked the same question. Her only solution was to suggest I availed myself of the free booze as it might help me sleep !! After five hours the cabin crew claimed they had run out of drink and the bar was closed (a common ploy when passengers are drunk on a plane) and fortunately at that point the majority of them passed out or fell asleep. I DO realize stag groups are good business for Virgin and the cabin crew were fantastic under very difficult conditions-keeping their cool even when subjected to drunk pawing idiots BUT personally I would not fly with them on that route again. When I arrived in Las Vegas a friend who had taken the same flight the day beforehad a similar story to tell yet when I wrote to Virgin upon my return expressing my concerns about both the discomfort and the safety aspects of the flight they informed me MY flight had been an isolated incident ( as I assume was the day before's flight???) I do believe I was unlucky and got a particually disruptive group however it's not an experience I care to risk repeating and would rather fly indirect than endure another journey like that.. As I can earn frequent flyer miles on other airlines it ultimately means I can get a better deal avoiding Virgin altogether so Virgin will not just lose my Las Vegas business (4 trips in the last year) but also my New York and Boston business.-something I'm actually quite sad about. having used them for so many years.
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Advantages: None. Just a standard airline service. Disadvantages: Lose your valuables. Unfriendly, unhelpful staff. Arrogant and dismissive customer service.
Mar 18th, 2007
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