T RIED AND TE ST E D FL IGHT
Virgin Atlantic A350-1000 Upper Class
LONDON-NEW YORK
B A C KGROUND Virgin Atlantic will receive four new A350-1000s this year, and eight more by 2021. These will replace its B747-400s and will initially be on the New York JFK route, with other destinations gradually being introduced, including Los Angeles. The aircraft features the carrier’s new Upper Class seat.
C HECK IN I arrived at Heathrow T3 at 0945 for my 1205 departure on VS605. Check-in was quick and security took ten minutes.
100
THE LOU NGE Virgin’s Clubhouse is still considered one of the best lounges worldwide, and it’s not hard to see why. It’s attractively designed with lots of areas to eat, work or socialise.
BO A RDING We boarded at Gate 17. At the seat was the airline’s new recyclable washbag made from kraft paper. I was offered champagne, juice or water.
THE SE A T The A350-1000 has 335 seats across three classes – 235 in economy, 56 in premium economy, and 44 in business class in a 1-2-1 configuration (rows one to 11; A, D-G, K). The seat is a bespoke version of the Safran Cirrus NG, with a sliding screen added. This is not a door – you can exit the seat and get into the aisle with it “shut” – but it does provide extra privacy and is welcome if you’re in one of the centre seats and don’t know your
when the aircraft is taxiing, which on this flight took nearly 30 minutes. This was the first A350 delivery, and
there were quite a few teething problems. By the time you fly, the tray table will have been completely replaced – it is being redesigned for this aircraft and all future deliveries – because while this one was large and firm for working on, it didn’t provide enough space. The seat controls take a little getting used to, and I found I had to shift my weight around before the seat would recline into bed mode, and also to return to sitting position. The in-flight entertainment system
– the Rave system from Zodiac Inflight Innovations (Zii) – is innovative, not least because there is no remote control so you either use the 18.5-inch touchscreen or pair the system to your device. This is an interesting idea but it didn’t work on this flight or on the return a day later. When it
neighbour. All seats face the window so if you are in one of the centre pairs it can be difficult to chat, but it at least gives you privacy if you want it. The seat feels spacious, although this is
at the expense of storage. Put bluntly, there isn’t any, at least for take-off and landing. To one side is an open area with two shelves, and there’s a table area above the seat controls that is useful during the flight, and a thin magazine holder where you’ll find the headphones, and that’s it. So if you want anything with you during take-off you have to hold it in your hands, and that includes
NOV EMB E R 20 19
does work, you will be able to control the screen from your device, connect to the IFE using Bluetooth and watch the content on your device, and buy a data package to use a set amount of MB. There is also wifi courtesy of Inmarsat and T-Mobile. On the way out, this was provided for free so was oversubscribed and didn’t really work. On the way back, it didn’t work at all. There’s a choice of more than 100 movies, 300 hours of TV shows, and more than 350 albums and podcasts. In terms of power, there are two USB ports, one just above an AC plug at knee level, and a second under the shelves.
bus ine s s tr a v el ler .c om
NICK MORRISH,
STUARTBAILEYPHOTO.COM
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