Virgin Blue goes upmarket

After establishing itself as the budget airline of choice, Virgin Blue is now moving to accommodate the more upmarket business traveller.

This week it announced a new seating system for the first three rows of its economy class which can be converted from a standard row of three seats into a more spacious two-seat unit.

Virgin Blue chief executive Brett Godfrey said that the “premium economy” system would attract people who could not afford to travel business class but who wanted more space.

“We always had more room available but we never really marketed it,” he said at the company’s annual general meeting in Brisbane on Wednesday.

Mr Godfrey said premium economy would create 50 per cent more room per passenger.

In comparison with the business class offered by its main competitor Qantas, Virgin offered more space in the premium economy seats for less money.

He said that premium economy was positioned between economy and business class for individual travellers and corporate and government flyers.

The armrests of the premium economy seats can be moved towards the unoccupied middle seat and also increase the seat pitch to an average of 34 inches (86cm).

A shared table then folds out from the centre of the empty seat.

Mr Godfrey said that this left the passenger with more workspace, using the tray table in front.

Between December 2007 and April 2008 the red leather seats will be installed in every Virgin aircraft, including the Embraer, the newest model of the red fleet.

Mr Godfrey said that the first E-jet entered service on Tuesday but he would not announce which airports, apart from Canberra and Sydney, would be part of the 20-route network.

Virgin Blue chairman Neil Chatfield said with the next 19 planes entering the country soon, Virgin “will open a new era in Australian aviation, expanding our Australian domestic network”.

The airports for Virgin’s desired 10 weekly flights on the Qantas-dominated route to the US have not been determined yet.

“The biggest hurdle that we are going to get through at the moment is the approval by the Americans,” Mr Godfrey said.

He hopes Virgin will start selling tickets for a flight to the US in May next year

Source: The Australian