Review of Virgin Atlantic flight New York → London in Business

Hello, frequent fliers and members of the aviation world, and welcome to another trip report. This is one I had been looking forward to flying on for the months approaching the date of travel. 

Date: August 2nd, 2023
Aircraft: Airbus 330-900NEO with two Rolls Royce Trent 7000 engines rated at 72,000 pound-foot of torque each.
Registration: G-VEII
Airline: Virgin Atlantic
Routing: JFK (John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York, USA) - LHR (London Heathrow, Slough, London, GB)
Flight Time: 6:03

So without further ado, here we go. I left New Jersey on the second of August, 2023, bound for New York's JFK airport, known for hour long taxi times, lackluster terminals, and possibly it's only saving grace, it's home to jetBlue. I arrived at Terminal 4 five hours early, allowing for plenty of time to clear security and visit Virgin's clubhouse lounge at JFK. 

Pulling up to Terminal 4, a little back story on today's journey. This is an aircraft I have been chasing for a very, very long time, and after many equipment swaps, due to Virgin only having about three 330NEO's at the time, I finally scored it. Virgin is unique at JFK - mostly because of Delta's 45% or so percent stake in the company. It has a separate check-in area for Upper Class passengers, as well as for the airline's loyalty members, and as of 2024, SkyTeam elite members.

There are seven or so desks for Delta One customers, and at the very end, three desks for Virgin Upper Class customers - decorated with Virgin staff in the iconic red attire. I had a hassle at check-in, due to my return flight leaving from Corfu - not from London, but the Virgin ground team did a great job getting it ironed out, and within five minutes, I was off to security. I had to decide whether or not to use the Business Class line or the TSAPre line, because, in true JFK fashion, both were an entity to behold of. 

Once through, and clearly in the Delta farm, I made my way to Virgin's Clubhouse lounge - which is MUCH better than what Delta offers at their hub. American carriers unfortunately have a long way to go with ground experience - simply, in my experience, because they let anybody with a credit card into their "exclusive" spaces, which makes them… well.. not so exclusive. Virgin on the other hand - is on a different level. I was met at the door, and shown around briefly - booked a shower slot with the front desk - and was shown to the general relaxation area, where I was shown a QR code to order food - should I please.

The lounge afforded great view of the alleyway, and of this older Virgin 330 headed to Manchester.

Once sat - the food ordered arrived, and the menu consisted of the following:

A curry chicken sandwich - tomato soup, chips, and a Haagen-Dazs ice cream.

The shower suite was perfectly clean - and adequate, and much better than most US lounge offerings - so I was satisfied in this department - not blown away by any means though. Finally, after two years of waiting, I was able to board the A330NEO that would take me to London.

Upon first impression, the new cabin is GORGEOUS. The red-purple lighting that is synonymous with the Virgin brand engulfing the cabin really made for an upbeat, exciting mood, while still being modern and conformed. It is a great use of space, and the suites were very private.

My seat, 2K was one of the even numbered seats closer to the window. It is the same seat used by SAS and Delta on their new airplanes, but with a twist. These had sliding doors, passenger controlled suite lighting, and slightly more storage. The large countertop to the left of the seat was more than adequate for storing different personal devices and belongings throughout the flight, and there were more than enough charging ports. 

Unlike the standard one size fits all pre flight beverage of Champagne offered by most airlines globally, Virgin does things a little differently. They offer their entire drinks menu before pushback - I went with a ginger beer - which - unfortunately was flat - but oh well. 

Sleeping suits were passed round before pushback, with three sizes available. I LOVE that Virgin still does this, with BA discontinuing the service, and United/American/Delta offering it on ultra long haul flights only.

We pushed off stand right on time, and headed out to the active runway for our departure.

In a one off for JFK, we roared into the skies above New York on time, and started on our North-Easterly transatlantic track to London.

With the suite door closed - the suite was incredibly private - and the table to the left - now pictured clearly, was a perfect size. Not a fan of canned water though - tastes a little odd - but oh well, the future is here… There was a coat hook conveniently placed by the door, and the literature pocket was located on the wall. The primary set of seat controls were set on the far end of the table, with the secondary set (accessible from bed position) was located right by my arm.

Half an hour after departure, tea appeared like magic. I love these mugs, and honestly some airlines *cough* *cough* British Airways *Ahem* should bring them back. I think a paper cup is absolutely unacceptable in Business, and if Virgin can offer them - so can you…

Dinner was fantastic - and for New York catering - which is historically meh, Virgin did a great job. They use Do & Co as their catering provider - who do a great job. The starter was a Burrata, which was really nice, followed by a pork chop with potato gratin and broccolini, followed lastly by a cream pudding wrapped in a chocolate mug, and topped with strawberry preserve. It was really nice - and great work from the onboard crew in presentation of each dish. 

The bedding was fantastic - the mattress topper provided was soft, the duvet was adequate - airline standards, and the pillow was strong enough to support a human head - which, is quite a low ball, but seeing as most airlines can't do that - we'll let them off..

Breakfast was served half an hour before landing into London, and unfortunately, it was dreadful. The baked beans were cold - and definitely not Heinz - I don't know what they were, but they more resembled rabbit droppings to be perfectly honest. Eggs were powdered. The sausage, bacon and pain au chocolate were possibly the only redeeming factors. And the tea. Oh - fresh fruit, not really. Fresher than a former prime ministers haircut… maybe. But definitely not fresh. 

We set down at Virgin's hub ahead of schedule, which was brilliant, and taxied the very short hop over to Terminal 3 at Heathrow - which, although the worst of the four active terminals at Heathrow, is much better than most US offerings.

With that, thank you very much for reading, and welcome to England. My ratings will be below, and as always, the next one is very soon to release.