V AUSTRALIA  Passenger Reviews and Passenger Trip Reports

V AUSTRALIA customer review :  17 November 2009 : by Rod Nathan   (Australia)

Sydney LAX return in Premium Economy. You are paying extra for noticeably larger seats with a good deal more legroom and 2-4-2 configuration instead of economy 3-4-3 so it is easy to get a pair to share. Plus the quick check in is nice. Food however is very ordinary just like economy and no sign of the inflight bar snax and free drinks that are promoted and pictured on the V Australia website. B777ER a nice aircraft but lack individual air vents so if you prefer to be cool you are unlucky. Seats are pretty hard just like Virgin domestic - the reading light on an over the shoulder bendy stick seems like are really good idea until you have banged your ear on it for the umpteenth time. Crew seemed friendly and motivated but they are not overworked in Premium Economy which I estimate carries 40 people against 60 in the same space for economy.

V AUSTRALIA customer review :  10 November 2009 : by S Avant   (Australia)

Premium Economy, Sydney to LAX return. Great check in both ends. Comfortable seats with good leg room although a little firm. IFE great and reliable. The only complaint would be about the inflight service. Out of Sydney the FA's seemed mildly interested (I know it's not business class) and concerned themselves with a fellow V Australia employee/passenger who it seemed may have been on the flight to check things out. He was the önly person in the cabin that commanded attention and early in the morning I had to ask him and the FA's to continue their loud conversation away from myself and wife. On the return we had fabulous FA's that brought around hot towels and offered top up drinks. Fussed over us and it was a great experience. A game of two halves?

V AUSTRALIA customer review :  10 November 2009 : by R Jones   (Australia)

Sydney to Los Angeles return with V Australia. Very disappointed in our direct Melbourne to Los Angeles being cancelled. No real warning, plane not ready and connecting flights missed so had to stay extra nights on the way there and on the way back at our own cost. Plane on first journey was a week old, seats were all fresh, excellent leg room and recline was bigger than competitor airlines in my opinion. The staff were caring, and had smiles. The menu for dinner on both journeys was satisfying. I don't drink alcohol on long flights so it did not worry me that only one drink with your main meal was included. For a small price, (as we booked early) regardless that we had to travel through Sydney I have to say V Australia are some hard competition and I will choose them again over other airlines.

V AUSTRALIA customer review :  14 October 2009 : by P Gerrard   (Australia)

SYD-LAX-SYD. I would suggest to book within 2 months of travel for best fare. Aircraft new and looks great. Crew circulated constantly and good crew numbers. In flight entertainment system is awesome and wont disappoint unless it is broken. Headsets in economy are fragile and we were warned to be gentle but mine soon broke but was replaced. Kids well catered to. Meals were great in both directions. Choice of three items for main meal and choice of 2 for breakfast. Wines etc free first glass then it gets weird - have to pay using a card and it is expensive. Cheap wine in a very small plastic cup for $7AUD isn't great value. Only issue could be bread rolls / croissant stored in fridge had become hard. Seats comfy enough but maybe a little thin. Blanket and pillow all provided and clean! Return trip much the same with good attention to "lights out" in both directions. V Australia help to co-ordinate so seats are upright during meals etc. Shades are kept down and passengers issued with personal booklights in place of overhead reading lights (which are still there) - makes it less intrusive on those around you. Cabin storage is very good with large overhead space but they are very high so small people will find access a problem. Crew hand out a small water bottle and refills at chiller is free. Staff come around with jugs of water too. For frequent travellers out of Australia V Australia offers above a discount service. I woudn't pay extra for Premium Economy as the only big differences I could see were approx 1" legroom (nothing) and leather seats which get a bit sweaty anyway and noise cancelleing headsets, One issue to watch - Economy pax can upgrade to "extra legroom" seats. These are in row 1 in front of bulkheads. Also this area is used by crew and passengers to get around cabin. The legroom is slightly longer but not really worth it since fold-up screens and trays also you cant use inflight systems until seat belt sign is off. Otherwise economy can use it from time you board to time you leave. I would suggest you disable "seat chat" - it resets movies to start. Seats adjacent to emergency exists are away from this and might be good value but cost $125 per leg.

V AUSTRALIA customer review :  13 October 2009 : by Neil Ramsay   (Australia)

SYD-LAX and return in economy with almost full flights. New 777's, great crews both legs where nothing seemed to be a problem for them, good food, excellent IFE, plenty of water runs, snack bar, clean toilets. However the seats are really uncomfortable (hard) and after 3 hours of a 14 hour flight and you don't want that. Also the seat back IFE touch screens are a bit of a problem if the pax behind you uses it as a punch screen. Very annoying when trying to sleep and you eventually have to say something. VA use Terminal 3 at LAX for departures. It is small, hot, crowded and slow when checking in with two VA flights leaving about the same time. And the food situation once airside is pretty dire.

V AUSTRALIA customer review :  10 October 2009 : by B Joiner   (Australia)

MEL-LAX-MEL. Bit disappointed with the airline considering it is fairly new. All you get in premium economy is extra legroom and some free drinks. When you are considering paying extra you should know that the cabin class is nothing special. The seats are the most uncomfortable that I have been in. On the way to LAX the crew were almost non existent and a drink was hard to come by. On the way back the crew were great, especially considering some aspects of the flight that were out of the control of the crew. The transfer systems both out and in to Sydney a joke - avoid transferring at Sydney at all costs or allow 4 hours. Could go on for hours about the flights however some things were out of the control of the airline. On the positive side is the entertainment system - probably the best I have used.

V AUSTRALIA customer review :  9 September 2009 : by M Hinds   (Australia)

SYD-LAX-SYD Flight to LAX was a premium experience, the return flight less so. Seat pitch good, width adequate, but seats rather hard by the end of the flight. Food, drinks, and service to LAX very good, return trip more of an economy experience, especially food. IFE excellent. Flights on time in both directions. V Australia outshines its competitors across the Pacific.

V AUSTRALIA customer review :  31 July 2009 : by A Santopoli   (Australia)

Melbourne to LAX via Brisbane then LAX to Melbourne via Sydney. Brand new aircraft with an excellent entertainment system. Snacks and drinks available to economy passengers in a self service area at the galley. Be aware that you are allowed one free alcoholic drink with your meal extra drinks are charged for. When connecting onto a domestic flight through Sydney can and will be an issue, delays are common as was for us. We missed our connecting flight and the transfer desk queues were horrendously long, be prepared for a long wait.

V AUSTRALIA customer review :  28 July 2009 : by Paul Looyen  (Australia)

Sydney to LAX return. Plane new and clean. Seat width excellent, pitch adequate. Food was best I have had for economy. Attendants were efficient and friendly. Entertainment system excellent. Return leg was delayed so this could have posed a problem with connecting flights with some passengers. I was impressed that Virgin kept those passengers happy by informing them as early as possible that their connecting flights had been adjusted to allow them to make their connections.

V AUSTRALIA customer review :  13 July 2009 : by D Campbell  (Australia)

Brisbane to JFK return. The connection from LAX was with Delta. No premium economy with Delta and I think there is a problem with V Australia not making this clear. The flight and service with V Australia was excellent though. The other difficulty was the connecting flight from JFK to LAX was delayed and I had to stay overnight in LAX. It would be better if the time to make the connection was more than two hours as JFK has reputation for delays. Our flight spent one and half hours waiting for clearance at JFK. FAs were attentive and friendly, but the LA staff person at check in was not able to comprehend the delayed flight that was rebooked by Delta. This was a cause of frustration as she struggled to handle the situation and revealed a lack of competence.

V AUSTRALIA customer review :  13 July 2009 : by D Lee  (Canada)

LAX-BNE-LAX. Service friendly, genuine and efficient. V Australia have a great business class section. Seats are comfortable and a lie flat bed which the cabin crew make up for you. Food and drink service great.

V AUSTRALIA customer review :  21 June 2009 : by T Stevenson  (Australia)

SYD-LAX-SYD. Both flights excellent. Cabin crew smiling. Seemed to be a mix of Australian and UK crew. Flights not full on either sector, so our party all had at least 2 seats to ourselves. Crew on the way up went out of their way to chill some champagne we had for a friends birthday. Food pretty good, and service attentive. They also seem relaxed about charging for additional alcoholic beverages. All in all, a comparable experience to Qantas on this route, except far less crowded and a little more relaxed.