Hello and welcome back to another review!
This is my second review on this website
Some people in the comments of my first flight report wanted me to do this since I brought it up in the first one
I was planning on doing this anyway but lets get started!
Also, if you want to see a full in-depth version of this trip, go to the bottom. The stuff here is the main part of the report with the photos! The in-depth version is just about the trip as a whole!
This took place back on 7/4/19 ENJOY!!!!!!
Also here is the routing for our trip:
We stayed a night at the Clayton Hotel which I've stayed at multiple times over the last 4 year. I do recommend staying at this hotel if you need one at MAN.
We had an 11:00 AM flight that day so that meant we had to get up early and not have any breakfast.
This was our shuttle for our trip over to Terminal 2
Arriving at Terminal 2 we were on the lower level for a reason I unfortunately forgot but this was the line for the elevator up…
Completely deserted TUI desks.
And quiet United desks but not completely deserted!
And finally our very VERY busy Virgin Atlantic desk.
Don't know to many airports where you can see the belts behind the scenes from the security area!!
Nice view of the check-in lobby from here!
Post-Security area below.
View of security.
After security, we headed to a pub/restaurant called the Spinning Jenny which served a very nice (and expensive) breakfast. If your flying out on a morning and you want to splurge on your trip. Go here, the breakfast was good and very filling since we wouldn't be eating by the time we left the British Isles and well out on the Atlantic Ocean.
Anyway, here's some plane spotting photos before our flight
To start, here's a Virgin Boeing 747-400 heading to Orlando (MCO)
Tail of our plane with Lufthansa A320, Etihad 787, and Thomas Cook A330 in the background.
Here's our plane to ATL - G-VROY - Pretty Woman - 18 years old
Virgin Atlantic 747, TUI 767 and Thomas Cook A330 all on remote stands
Lufthansa A320
At our seat!!. Great view of Terminal 1 and Singapore Airlines A350!!
Once again having to take screenshots of pushback, takeoff, and landing since FR wouldn't allow videos!
Here's our pushback with a nice Thomas Cook A330 and Turkish Airlines A321!!
Image of the takeoff was "to heavy" so here's the plane just before takeoff.
Bye-bye England!! Hope to see you next year (2020). Now next year (2021) because of COVID-19!!! :(
Also Flybe Dash 8 Q400 in corner.
City of Liverpool with the River Mersey.
Snack-Pretzels and Apple Juice.
Meal- Pasta, Crackers, Butter, Fruit Snack, Water, and Chocolate Pudding
After that. I sat back and watch a couple of movies, got some more drinks, went to the bathroom a lot, and slept before waking up to be in near the East Coast of Canada when I spotted this!! Unknown who this was but I would love to find out. I believe it was a twin-engine jet so that kind of narrows it down but not really!
Nice view of flaps at the bottom of the picture!
Delta 777 doing a parallel landing with us on decent into Atlanta
Touchdown in Atlanta!!! | Unfortunately the photo wouldn't load :(
Concourse F (ATL International Terminal)
Delta 757-200 taking off
Southwest 737-700 on arrival
Fellow "Queen of the Skies" China Airlines Cargo Boeing 747-400F
The little Delta 717 looks tiny compared to the Virgin 747!!! These will leave Delta's fleet at the end of 2025! So you have plenty of time to get on one of these bad boys!
Nice welcome to see the Lufthansa A330 in their new fancy livery!!!
Next to our gate is an Air France 777 in their SkyTeam livery!!
Here come the bags!!!
Nice welcome off the plane!! This guy is headed to London
Virgin Atlantic have been a great airline that I've flown on for many years and this trip was no different! The night before we stayed at the Clayton Hotel at Manchester Airport. I've stayed there many times over the last 5-6 years and they always are a great choice. Definitely would recommend if you need a place to stay at MAN. There was a lot of construction at Manchester's T2 so we had to get dropped off at the arrivals level. The line for the elevator was ridiculous and took forever to get upstairs. Check-In and security were quick and easy. Security checkpoints in the UK aren't as serious or in-your-face like how they are in the states. Feels good not to get yelled at, at security! Terminal 2 was packed! Very different now a days in the age of COVID-19. We got some breakfast at a place called "The Spinning Jenny". The food and service were great but it was a bit overpriced.
We headed over to our gate. Luckily there was nobody around since all the other flights were leaving at the other end. Did some plane spotting and before we knew it, it was time to board. Once on the plane we settled down into our seats and were looking forward to heading home, our flight had to have every seat full since boarding took a little while and there was a bit of a line in the jetway. Not to long later we were in the air!! A small drink and snack service was provided once we were past the UK. The lunch service was passed around and it was pretty good!! Once that was done we sat back and watched some movies. Later I got some sleep once we were around Canada. I woke up and we were over New York/New Jersey, and a small snack box was passed around.
Within a hour or two we were ready to land in Atlanta. We were lucky enough to see a now sadly retired Delta 777-200 landing on the other runway. Our landing was a bit rough but I've been in worse! We pulled on to the same gate we went out of the week before! I've seen other photos of Atlanta's International Terminal and the Korean Air 747-8 has gone to that gate many times in the past so this may be the only gate that is suitable for the Queen of the Skies. Once off the plane we were greated by an also now retired Virgin A340 which was going to London later. Then we headed over to customs and grabbed our bags.
Also here is the trip report which was my first ever YouTube video:
Virgin Atlantic may be the airline I have flown the most over the years and they always deliver. Their planes and airports they serve are very good but here are my thoughts:
Manchester Airport is a very cool airport. The terminals are a bit old but most of em are good. Terminal 2 however is getting a complete renovation and the old buildings will be gone soon so it will be a bit crowded with construction and passengers flying in and out. However I am glad that Virgin Atlantic have a hub up there since we always go to the North East of the UK while Manchester is in the North West! The staff are very professional and Virgins end and MAN Airports end. The food and shopping choices may need a bit upgrading but it still is quite good. Nonetheless Manchester Airport is a very nice airport and also they have great plane spotting. I hope to go to their observation deck at some point!
Like I said Virgin Atlantic is a great airline and always deliver on their flights. The cabin crew were very friendly and nice. They were always checking on everyone and new what they were doing. The cabin of their 747s are a bit dated and quite used up but its always fun going on a 747. The IFE screens were not super responsive but they had a wide variety of films and TV shows. The food, drink, and snacks also are good but they could be a bit better. Either way, I've always had a good experience with Virgin Atlantic and hopefully that will continue in the future!
Atlanta Airport is such an awesome airport! Customs and Immigration was nice and easy for once and collecting our luggage was easy! The one thing that was not to easy was having to redo security since we had a connecting flight. The security line took way to long! Hopefully that will change. Of course the food and shopping is very good. Plenty of options for anyone!
To conclude, Virgin Atlantic is a great airline if you need a flight across the pond! It can be a bit expensive but its definitely worth it! Food and service is good, cabin is always cleaned, and a good safety record! Manchester is about to go through a well-deserved renovation so I'm so excited for that to be completed in a few years! ATL also is a perfect airport! Try getting connections in there if the tickets are cheap or go to Atlanta for a vacation! Atlanta is a pretty cool city especially if your an avgeek. The plane spotting at ATL is great and the Delta Airlines Museum is also there so check that out if your down there!
Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed it. Feel free to leave a comment and if your into other aviation related things, check out my YouTube channel "AlaskaAirlines17" Link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0xMfohuQ-f7uFIQTF2wFUg (Copy and paste the link)
Stay safe and enjoy your day!!
3 Comments
Meal is a bit disappoiting, I expected something fancier and more refined with VS glamorous image.
Was there any snack served before landing ?
How was the crew?
Yes there was a snack before landing but it wasn't anything special. The crew were very nice as always on Virgin!
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