Flight Test: Virgin Atlantic versus Cathay Pacific
TravelMole Asia Pacific editor Ian Jarrett flew from London to Hong Kong with Virgin Atlantic and then onto Perth with Cathay Pacific. Both legs were in Economy class. Here he evaluates the experiences.
On the Ground
Not a good start. At Heathrow, Virgin Atlantic would not transfer my bag onto a Cathay Pacific flight in Hong Kong, even though I had an onward boarding pass to Perth. I was told Virgin would only accept responsibility for the bag as far as Hong Kong.
This was strange. On the outbound leg, Cathay in Perth had checked my bag through to my final destination, even though I was connecting to another carrier, Air Astana, out of Hong Kong.
Cathay had a more can-do attitude to the onward baggage problem , suggesting I take my Virgin Atlantic luggage tag to the Cathay transit desk at Hong Kong International where the bag would be retrieved and redirected to Perth.
In the end, I opted for caution and retrieved my own bags off the carousel, and re-checked them for the flight to Perth.
But the entire process – immigration, customs, check-in, security etc took more than an hour.
Score: Virgin Atlantic 0 Cathay Pacific 1
In the Air – Comfort
According to the SeatGuru website, Virgin’s A340-600 seat width in economy is 17.5 inches with a pitch of 31 inches. For an 11-hour-plus journey that is not over generous. There were 312 passengers on board the 346-seat capacity aircraft.
VS 200 was going onto Sydney from Hong Kong.
Cathay’s A330-300 was also almost full for the night flight to Perth. I had slept well on the London-Hong Kong leg but was restless on the Hong Kong-Perth sector. The VA seat felt more comfortable, although there was little to choose between the two.
Score: Virgin Australia 1 Cathay Pacific 0
In the air – service
Cathay’s can-do attitude on the ground was also evident in the air. Overnight flights can be a challenge for passengers and crew but the Cathay team had a more cheerful approach to cabin service.
Score Virgin Atlantic 0 Cathay Pacific 1
In the air – food
Not a lot to choose between the two. Virgin offered a "Fruity Waldorf salad" followed by a choice of three main meals, one vegetarian. Breakfast before landing in Hong Kong also had a vegetarian option, as well as congee.
Cathay’s offerings were also pretty standard fare, although I passed on the main meal, as a third aircraft meal in 12 hours did not set my taste buds on fire.
Score: Virgin Atlantic 1, Cathay Pacific 1
Overall Score: Virgin Atlantic 2 Cathay Pacific 3
Verdict: Virgin Atlantic never quite recovered from a bad start. The refusal to transfer my bag in Hong Kong for the flight to Perth was frustrating – and had the potential to cause a missed connection.
Disclosure: Both Virgin Atlantic and CX flights were fully paid for.
Ian Jarrett
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