Choice of either for a cattle class flight to east coast. Cost is the same. Are either significanty better than the other?Never flown virgin, and haven’t flown with BA since I was a kid, so experience probably isn’t valid.

Virgin’s generally nicer but check which model of plane the flights are and go with the newest planes

Flew Virgin to LA over Christmas.

Unless you like bad service from start to finish, I’d avoid.

Until recently, I’d have said either but after reading the article the other day about how a uniformed marine was treated by virgin, I’d be flying with ba.

I might even follow it up with a letter to virgin.

I prefer BA but there’s little to choose between them for cattle class. One thing which may sway it if you’re likely to fly often or not.

If you are, Virgin gets you lounge access earlier, but BA has better long term benefits, including better reward flights using air miles.

BA every time but then I am biased as the wife flies for them.

Virgin are running 747s and a340s apparently (how old!?) , and BA the 777, although that’s a much newer plane it only runs GE engines……which is bad form considering I work for the competition 😀

I don’t particularly like Virgin (food is terrible) but BA/Virgin are much of a muchness.

BA 777s use GE and Rolls Royce engines.

I few years ago I used Air India, very happy with them.

Bottom line was the work had instigated a ‘no business’ policy for non-VP’s etc, so I went ‘Raj’ class instead for the same price as premium economy 🙂

Not sure if they still do it. or the price.

Picked me up from home, good lounges and cracking food – in-cabin entertainment was dire, but I rarely bother anyway.

Trek – you’re absolutely right, the Trent800.
Read an article today about some Boeing airframe that GE had a monolopy on, it may be the new variant of the 777, I can’t remember now

I don’t know which is better. My only experience of Virgin economy was back from Johannesburg a couple of years ago and it was OK but I was surprised to be so cramped (I’m 5’8 & under 11 stone) so I’d give BA a go in the hope they may be better.

I’ve been flying to the carribean for 13 years – nothing but a great experience from Virgin.

FWIW after booking again for this year, we received an e-letter explain how there plane layout has been changed this year to be updated and more roomy for passengers.

I would add I only fly premium economy and the free G&T may have clouded my judgement 😉

Virgin is ok, but BA seem to have nicer crew and staff. On the route we fly (Heathrow to O’Hare) the BA planes generally seem a little nicer.

Not much to choose really, but I’d go BA.

Kryton,PE? You poor soul! Flat bed for anything over about six hours! Choice of gins, too. 😉

A BA triple 7 and Rolls Royce is not always a happy combination……

I prefer Virgin(s). They are a bit funkier than BA especially If you’re stuck down at the back.

Virgin’s gimmicky approach annoys me, I prefer BA in all classes.

CaptainFlashheart – Member
Kryton,PE? You poor soul! Flat bed for anything over about six hours! Choice of gins, too.

Damn *upgrades*

Booked BA.
Cheers guys

Thread closed 😀

Terminal 5 is a nice place to wander around for a while. Someone told me some fairly impressive stats about it, can remember many of them!

BA.

Virgin. Screw BA.

All the airlines have gone downhill in the past few years, cost cutting means there is no slack in anything anymore, one little problem and it disrupts everything. Of all the airlines I have flown, Virgin is close to the worst (although nobody could be as bad as United) food terrible, staff churlish and rude, always some kind of delay.

BA probably just as bad these days…

BA. First long haul flight outside of the RAF was to Vancouver this year with BA. I hate long haul but I have no complaints whatsoever. With BA the fact you get to use T5 was a decider. Easiest, cleanest and most modern terminal I’ve personally been in.

I’ve been told that the leg room in Virgin is not as forgiving and the interiors are a bit aged. That was friends who used a340 and b747 to Vegas.

Anyone used the Business Parking at T5?

The pods that take you to the terminal are fun in a Thunderbirds vehicle type style.

Far better than waiting for a shuttle bus.

They’re all the same; I don’t know why people agonise about choice of airline. It all comes down to your experience on the day; are there any delays and if so, how does the airline handle them? Next is the particular cabin crew member looking after your section and a whole lot of other things like the meal, the film, your neighbours and the seat.

What matters to me is schedules and timings; for a long-haul flight I like to sleep overnight and (with luck) wake up on the approach. If there’s a transit, I don’t want to be wasting hours at some ghastly dump like Heathrow and I don’t want to be doing an extra five-hour dogleg east to Dubai or Doha if I’m going to somewhere in Africa.

That said, I never use BA because they are more expensive than other airlines, their crew are more snotty and they played some really dirty tricks in the campaign against Virgin Atlantic.

I fly quite a bit with both of ’em dependening on the destination.
I always choose an asian vegetarian meal: with BA it’s excellent, with Virgin it’s vergin (see what I did there) on inedible.

Globalti: not sure how you reconcile your first sentence and your last paragraph! 😀

BA have always been so fantastically snotty that I hate the idea of flying with them. The Daily Express of airlines.

and they played some really dirty tricks in the campaign against Virgin Atlantic.

Don’t think beardie-Branson is whiter than white in that little exchange either.

Don’t forget to check this out before you check in: Tells you which are the best seats, and which to avoid… http://www.seatguru.com/airlines/British_Airways/information.php

As above – Seat Guru is a vital tip!

Oh, and best seats? Well, for a BA 747 – apart from 1A or 1K which are both jolly nice and benefit from the “Loo with a view”, my pick would always be 62A or K. 🙂