Los Angeles International

I walked over from terminal 2 to terminal 3 at LAX, where the counters of Virgin America are located. These were quite different from what you usually sea. They were open counters with small desk and a nice arrangement in terms of design, décor and layout.

The line was short and it was my turn. I had already checked in and printed my boarding pass in London, but wanted to see, if I could upgrade to First Class and how much the fee for the upgrade was. I was also in the need to change the frequent flyer number, as I wanted to credit the flight to Virgin Atlantic and not to my eleVAte account. The agent checked if an upgrade was available. As I was already booked in main cabin select, the upgrade fee would only be 70 USD. She also noticed that I had paid for a visit in the Virgin America lounge “Loft @ LAX”. She asked if I would like to change to the earlier flight leaving at 16:50 which would get me into Seattle much earlier than my scheduled 22:10 arrival. There would be no fee for this in my case. Given that I was tired I decided to move to an earlier flight. There were also two seats available in First Class and now one of those was mine. The procedure was nice and relaxed and the agent friendly and I were addressed a few times by name. The only thing was that the agent was not aware that one could credit the miles to Virgin Atlantic but unlike other agent at various airlines, she tried it and did a quick search in the online manual and confirmed that it was indeed possible.

I received a new boarding pass and was given direction how to reach the security checkpoint.

Security was empty, two lines were used and only two passengers were waiting to pass the nudeoscope. So I passed security quickly and was on my way to the lounge, which was located upstairs.

The agent let me in, but did not notice immediately that I already had paid for the visit. But after a second look at my boarding pass she saw the notice. She apologized and mentioned that it was not in the system. I mentioned that I not only upgraded but also moved to an earlier flight and maybe it went missing during the rebooking. She gave me a short introduction in the lounge features and pointed out that there were no calls made.

The lounge was also a nice change from the usual airline club. It was using a nice décor with darker colours in the back and fancy lounge chairs, while the front had large window overlooking the tarmac. Tables were also available and a bar was serving coffee and espresso while the buffet was self-service and offered a hot soup, fruit, sandwiches and wraps as well as yoghurt. Wine and other spirits were also available. Non-alcoholic beverages were self-service along with water with cucumber and fruits.

It had close to 80 minutes in the lounge and used it to relax and have some nibbles to eat. The view was great as one could see the runway and planes were landing and taking off. Time passed quickly and our plane arrived at the gate below the lounge.

A few minutes before boarding time I headed down to the lounge. Boarding had not started yet but the agent was making the pre boarding announcement which was hard to understand given that it was not very loud and there was a constant noise in the terminal.
Boarding was announced for those travelling in First Class and as far as I understand Main Cabin Select.
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03 October 2013
LAX – SEA
[Los Angeles International – Seattle Tacoma]
VX 795 (Virgin America); Airbus A 320 (N632VA / ‘Youtube Air’)
Gate 34
16:55 – 19:25 [effective 16:53 – 19:32]
First Class
Seat 2 D

I was greeted at the door by a male flight attendant. Unlike at other planes, there was no wall but a violet glass panel. The lights in the plane were matching these colours and the seats in First Class were white leather seats. I was able to store my carry on in the overhead compartment.

What was my first impression of the First Class Cabin? The seats offered substantial legroom and it was electronically operated with button shaped like the seat – similar to what you find in some cars (e.g. Mercedes Benz) using for the electronically operated front seats. The button for the lumbar jack was placed at the armrest.

The seat offered an in-seat monitor under the armrest in the middle and a tray table under the other armrest. Pre departure drinks were offered and unlike at some other airlines they were also serving alcoholic ones, which came in a plastic cup.

The other passengers boarded the plane and the back was quite full, while one seat in First Class remained empty. After all passengers had boarded the captain welcomed us on board. He did his welcome speech standing in the galley so he could be seen by the passengers.

The safety video was shown, but in First Class the monitors were stored, First Class got a safety demonstration by one of the flight attendants.

We were pushed back at 16:53 and taxied for runway 24 and took off at 16:59.

We flew towards the Pacific Ocean and then turned to the North. While we reached the cruising altitude, a few updates of our Airbus A 320-214. Our Airbus came to Virgin America as new plane on June 12, 2007. It was powered by two CFM56-5B4 engines with 27000 lbf. Our Airbus was equipped with 8 seats in First Class offering a seat pitch of 55 inch and seat width of 21 inch. They are fully electronically operated white leather seats as mentioned above. Passengers in First Class received two free checked bags and complimentary drinks and meals. Virgin America is selling the first row in Economy Class as well as the seats in the Exit row as Main Cabin Select seats with complimentary snacks and complimentary drink. The seats offer an increased leg room of 38 inch and a seat pitch of 17.7 inch. Regular Economy – also sometimes described a Main Cabin – has a seat pitch of 32 inch and seat width of 17.7 inch. Virgin America offers Audio Video On Demand, but the selection is free of charge only to passengers in First Class, while the passengers in Main Cabin Select can enjoy some feature for free but have to pay for others while those in Main Cabin have a wider selection of free choices.

Virgin America started service on August 8, 2007 with a fleet of Airbus narrow bodies and is headquartered in Burlingame. The approval process for the required US Department of Transportation certificate application took some time and several changes had to be made before the airline finally was given part and later full permission to operate.

After the seat belt signs were switched off, the flight attendant serving First Class was taking orders for the meal. As far as I remember there were two options available and I choose the beef with pumpkin, asparagus and goat cheese and a lemon tart as dessert. I went with a glass of white wine the meal, which was delivered immediately while the meal was heated.

While we waited for the meal to be served, I started the entertainment system. It was an audio video on demand system with touch screen and quite easy to navigate. The selection was quite good and also better than on some well-known international carriers – of course it matters, that I was sitting in First Class and all options were free while the passengers in the back had to pay for some of the available films and music videos. Gogo Inflight was also working, which has to be paid for by all passengers.

The meal was served individually by the flight attendant. It came on a tray and had salt and pepper shaped like a small plane quite similar to the one I have had at Virgin Atlantic. The food tasted quite good and the portion was substantial.

The dessert was served after the tray with the main dish was cleared.

During the remaining flight time I lowered my seat and dozed a bit and listened to music until we began our final descend into Seattle. We were approaching Seattle Tacoma from the North and finally touched down at 19:26 and taxied for our gate. I was able to leave the plane quickly and was on my way to the train to downtown.

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