Virgin Australia’s new livery showcasing their transition to a premium-focused carrier Photo: Jacob Pfleger | AirlineReporter
VIRGIN AUSTRALIA BUSINESS CLASS REVIEW BASICS:
Airline: Virgin Australia
Aircraft: Boeing 737-800 (VH-YIF)
Departed: Brisbane Airport (BNE)
Arrived: Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport (SYD)
Stops: Non-stop flight
Class: Business class
Seat: 1F
Length: About 1.5 hours
Cheers: Fresh and funky looking cabin interior and great catering for such a short flight
Jeers: No foot-rests and no curtain divider thus limiting privacy
Overall: A great new business product on the Australian domestic market which with a few improvements will give competitors a run for their money.
During the last two years, perhaps no other airline has gone through as much transformation as Virgin Australia. Starting off as the first true low-cost carrier (LCC) in Australia in 2000 (then known as Virgin Blue) it quickly became a popular choice for leisure travelers. As the Australian market became more saturated with LCCs, Virgin decided it was time to remodel and focus more instead on the premium market. This transformation included the introduction of a business class across the fleet, with all aircraft having completed the re-fit by the 3rd quarter of 2013.
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Virgin Australia’s Airbus A330 (VH-XFB) arriving at Sydney for the first time. Photo by Virgin Australia.
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Virgin Australia’s Airbus A330 (VH-XFB) landing at Sydney. Photo by Virgin Australia.
Click either photo for larger
Three will enter, one will leave. Where once there was Virgin Blue who operated domestic flights with in Australia and then V Australia and Pacific Blue for international, there will only one: Virgin Australia.
“From today, Virgin Australia will operate domestically in Australia,” Virgin Australia Airlines’ first ever CEO John Borghetti said. “By the end of the year, our international product V Australia and Pacific Blue will also operate under the Virgin Australia name.”
This new livery looks slick and is closest to the old V Australia livery, which I have been a fan of. I have no sad feelings seeing the Pacific Blue and Virgin Blue livery disappear. I have never been a fan of the red, red, red livery.
Virgin Blue Boeing 737-800
How much more innocent can you get than a game of peek-a-boo? Well it is not so innocent when a child ended up locked in an overhead bin on a recent Virgin Blue flight.
Natalie Williamson says her and her 17month son and husband were on a Virgin Blue flight from Fiji to Sydney, when the fun game turned serious. The husband (who is now estranged) was playing a fun little game of peek-a-boo with their child, Riley when one of the flight attendants decided to join in. She thought it would be a good idea to put Riley into the overhead bin and shut the door. Bad call.
“My husband, Shayne, was standing one metre behind my son, Riley, when the air steward picked him up and placed him in the overhead compartment,” Natalie told the Herald Sun. She stated that people around her were laughing and found it funny, but found it very disturbing.
The airline has confirmed that the the flight attendant did put Riley into the overhead bin and has since been fired. Virgin Blue offered Natalie free flights for having to deal with the bad situation, but that doesn’t seem to make things okay in her eyes.
For most people this might become a story to tell, but Natalie is saying that things for Riley aren’t going too well. She states that he is having trouble sleeping and won’t leave her side. “If I’m not in the same room as him, he will scream and yell ‘Mum, mum, mum’,” she said.
It sounds like the flight attendant messed up, but enough to deserve a firing? Well, I guess we don’t know if the flight attendant has other mess ups. I am no counselor, but it seems a bit odd that Riley would have so many issues after only a few seconds in the overhead bin. Either way I don’t think other flight attendants should try this game with other kids anytime soon.
Found via AOL Travel News Image: Andrew Sieber
