I didnt expect to have to post this when I booked some recent Virgin Blue flights.... but here goes... and I know i will probably get whipped... but hey...
Check-in facilities and staff all great ! friendly and efficient throughout....
Aircraft clean, tidy, stylish and relatively comfortable...
Good range of value for money refreshments....
HOWEVER.....
The only thing that let DJ down was the Cabin Crew.....
They all looked fab... (on all 3 flights i took) and were very welcoming..... but then once airborne things tended to deteriorate into a bit of a pantomime....
Excessive use of PA sytstem throughout all flights became very very annoying.... jokes flying between staff at forward and rear..... including a selection of quite "ripe" swearing... always nice on flights with kids... plus the cheesiest standard PA's i have ever ever heard...
On one flight i had the misfortune of being seated in 1A.... opposite a No1 who was very very intimidating.... the PA was stuck to her like a limpet.... i was waiting for a selection of songs from the shows.... and when she managed to un-fasten herself from the PA she spent the rest of the time trying (and suceeding) to embarass her other "team members" including one poor girl who was training.... and looked like she had had about as much as she could take....
On another flight I heard the No1 commenting (loudly) on the dress sense of the pax in row 1 - gee how charming.... and on how a disabled pap was a "bloody nuisance"..... again... how charming... try and keep the bitching for behind a curtain....
Putting the fun back into flying is one thing.... and DJ's inflight "atmosphere" - would probably go down well in the european charter flight market... but I would say that if i was regular business traveller within Oz... i would soon get a bit tired of all that "fun"....
Yeah... its great that the cabin crew were having a good time....
but dont be seen or heard to do it at the expense of the punters or fellow crew.... It looks terrible...
Having flown QF several times on domestic.... i have to say that they win hands down.... they are so much more professional and polished than anything i saw on DJ.... it will be interesting to see how QF's LCC shapes up...
I know that the quality of the flight is very much dependent on the crew.... I worked for various airlines both on the ground and in the air for over 10 years.... and after sampling DJ 3 times.... i feel justified to express my opinion.... I was looking forward to flying with them... hoping for fresh, innovative service.... not hours of cringing at every PA, and avoiding eye contact with bossy, over-confident crew...
Maybe i was just unlucky with DJ .... seeing as though their pax figures and growth rate are so high...
Comments?