Would you be willing to pay more for space in Y?

What Virgin should consider is a whole new Economy seat design, something that is comfortable within the given space.... if this is possible - I don't know. Economy seats haven't really changed that much, maybe something can be done.

quote:Originally posted by pixuk


One bum in an Upper Class seat is worth about 10 bums down the back.

sorry pixuk - I don't think there is room for one's bum in a seat at the back!

I think one of the issues for me in the lower class cabin is that so much of the space is taken up by the v-port system under some seats. I know it is great having vport, but on the odd occassions I have got one of the V-port affected seats, I have found myself damning the system.

I'm with Mr Geezer when he says economy sucks. For goodness sake Aerolineas Argentinas,Air China,Air Namibia,and even Eva Air can manage 34 inches. Often you can get more inches, but at a more competitive price IMHO. And yes, I know that the fringe service is debatably better on Virgin lower class, but what good is a wide choice of films if the screen is covered by your legs because you cannot put them comfortably under the seat in front.

If I can get an upper class or middle class ticket, then I am happy to fly virgin. But if I have to go down the back, I know I am going to hate the whole experience, so I will go with the cheapest, and not often is that Virgin.

More money - less space - no way!

Never experienced any other virgin class, so I cant compare service, and having flown quite a few charter flights (at 28ins) makes 32ins feel like a dream!!!
But a few more inches wouldnt kill virgin...

quote:Originally posted by virgin Fred
For goodness sake Aerolineas Argentinas,Air China,Air Namibia,and even Eva Air can manage 34 inches.
More money - less space - no way!

I like the way you rate Eva Air over Air China and Air Namibia .

They're actually quite good, plus they carry a W product as well.

quote:Originally posted by DJmatthews
What Virgin should consider is a whole new Economy seat design, something that is comfortable within the given space.... if this is possible - I don't know. Economy seats haven't really changed that much, maybe something can be done.

Quite. I'm sure they could do something with the under floor space - like put the V:port boxes there, or use it to give you more legroom.

For me, it would depend on how much extra legroom and how much extra it would cost me. Price is my principal concern when selecting flights.

Originally posted by VS_Lover
No way - i know what i'm paying for.

If you want extra leg room - save up some more and book a better class of cabin.

Do you realy work for V-A??????

Originally posted by phil_2405
For me, it would depend on how much extra legroom and how much extra it would cost me. Price is my principal concern when selecting flights.

I'm the same way. I'm not currently in a position where cost isn't a factor. So much so that last November when I went to the UK I booked my trip with CO on the Virgin operated codeshare (stupid me not realizing that it wasn't eligable for VS mileage credit). For me it certainly would depend on how much the extra room was and the price difference. I prefer to fly W when I can, but not flying W doesn't necessarily mean I can afford to spend more on Y.

I see some of you discussing seat pitch in W... check out this photo of Thai Airways Premium Economy service. I admit that I haven't actually looked up the seat pitch, but it looks quite impressive.

Just got back from HKG, went out in G-VOGE and return in G-VSSH. Had 62C and 34C respectively. On G-VOGE the seat pitch was definitely tight in Y and the bigger V:Port box under seat 'A'. However on G-VSSH there was definitely increased seat pitch and hence lot more legroom, the V:Port box also shrunk. Getting the legroom on G-VSSH was very nice.

No I wouldn't pay more. If other airlines can do it then why cant Virgin.

I would never ever fly Economy again having flown PE last month and returned this month I took a trip down the rear on the way to Vegas about an hour after our trayshad been cleared and poor people were still sat staring at the down there. You have to virtually have to walk sideways thru the aisles god awful IMHO.

I wouldnt dream of flying VS East there are so may better airlines to do that with.

Usually do BKK with Thai and at 34inch pitch why not. In fact we did LHR, BKK, SYD, Auckland, and back with themand I must say no discomfort at all and impeccable service.

PE though is really a good economy service. That is what economy should be like. not just seats but service too.

Surely some of us already do - it's called PE....

Exactly Cat Exactly!

[Scrooge]

Originally posted by catsilversword
Surely some of us already do - it's called PE....

Claire what I think they are asking is,would you pay say 20 pounds more per ticket?

For those of us that love VS the answer would be sure,but there are a lot of people,still,who have never been on VS metal and fly based on price,now the problem comes when charter airliners start offering better seat pitch with AVOD etc,kind of like the way VS slapped around BA in the mid 80's.

I would pay more for extra leg room in Economy as that is the only reason I book PE.

Originally posted by jetwet1

Originally posted by catsilversword
Surely some of us already do - it's called PE....

Claire what I think they are asking is,would you pay say 20 pounds more per ticket?

Ah, sorry Jet, I really should have read all the other answers first! It does occur to me though, that the suggestion of paying a nominal amount extra, as you stated, is somewhat irrelevant, when you consider just how much prices can vary in Y in any case! Depends on when you book and offers going at the time. If you've paid, for example, £450 to travel in Y, and had then paid an extar amount for more leg room, how peed off would you be to then find you could have got the whole damned flight cheaper, just by buying at a later date? Surely you'd then not be happy to have paid the higher price, let alone a premium on top for more room!

I wouldn't pay extra ( but then I'm quite short anyway!!)

I would pay the extra - but as a number of posts have pointed out it depends on how much and what extra room there is - currently the extra £50 for an exit row or bulkhead seems a good deal - but the problem with airline seat prices is that they vary so widely - PE can cost the same as economy depending on when you intend to fly and how well sold the flight is in those categories.

I guess we all want the maximum leg room possible for the lowest £ but thats nothing unusal is it

[preiffer]

It's funny how we've all changed our mindsets to "accept" the life of paying £50 for an exit row.

Have we all forgotten when they were FREE?!


(And no, the charge hasn't removed the "early check-in scramble" that happens as people turn up desperate to grab an exit seat, so it's NOT a "benefit"! [ii])

I would definately be interested, but it does depend on the cost.
At 6ft1, I do find it difficult to spend all those hours with such little leg room on long-haul flights, which is why I tend to use the £50 exit seat option if it is available.

As much as I would love to fly in the premium classes, my budget simply won't allow for it. I realise that economy does not generate the same level of revenue at UC, however surely an airline which looks after the loyal customers in economy, even when it does not need to, would send a powerful message and enhance the brand even more.

Virgin already offers the best business class for the same price (or even sometimes cheaper). This should be true for all the classes - more leg room, better entertainment, but at no extra cost. Passengers should always be looking at flying Virgin first and only choose another airline because VS is fully booked.

Originally posted by webdes03

Originally posted by phil_2405
For me, it would depend on how much extra legroom and how much extra it would cost me. Price is my principal concern when selecting flights.

I see some of you discussing seat pitch in W... check out this photo of Thai Airways Premium Economy service. I admit that I haven't actually looked up the seat pitch, but it looks quite impressive.

I don't think it does look that impressive tbh, unless I'm missing something, it doesn't look as good as virgin PE in the 'bubble'.

Daywalker!!!!! The space in the new Thai PE looks great to me. My Knees still touch the seat in front when the person reclines in PE. So I do think you are missing something. This space combined with Thai's service has to be a winner!

Originally posted by Monkey
Daywalker!!!!! The space in the new Thai PE looks great to me. My Knees still touch the seat in front when the person reclines in PE. So I do think you are missing something. This space combined with Thai's service has to be a winner!

OK, I just found the seat pitch, it's 43". I wasn't aware of that. At 5ft 11" I find 38" to be OK for me

I am 5ft 6" just for the record (Lanky legs)

5ft 6, you should try to sit in the seat properly then

I'm 6ft and I would probably tolerate about 31" in Economy for a few hours but definitely not for a 9 hour trip, especailly on a night flight.

Answering the question it would depend on how much more it would cost to have more room in Economy, but I think the prices should stay the same if VS were to take out seats and give passengers more room. I would take an exit row seat if the option was there, which I have done so on some of my recent air travels.

Mind you, if other airlines start to give Economy passengers more room then VS would have to follow suit.

These airlines offer a minimum 32" seat pitch
BMI, Cathay, Emirates, Singapore, Scandinavian and American

Min 33"
Air Canada, Garuda, Quantas

Min 34"
Air NZ, AA, Lufthansa, Malaysian, Thai, US

So VS75 there are plenty of others offering more room in y