B787-9, PREMIUM ECONOMY, NEW YORK-LONDON
“I was welcomed with a glass of prosecco or juice and offered a newspaper. A bottle of water and an amenity kit containing socks, an eyemask, earplugs, a pen and a toothbrush and paste were waiting at the seat, along with a blanket, pillow and headphones (the same non noisecancelling ones provided in economy). Virgin’s B787 has 35 premium economy seats set across five rows (21-25). In front of the cabin are washrooms, a galley and the “Wander Wall”, which was stocked with snacks for premium economy passengers to help themselves to later in the flight. A bulkhead and curtains separate the cabin from economy class at the rear. I was in the back row in aisle seat 25C.
“The leather seat was comfortable and spacious, with noticeably more room than in economy. It had an adjustable headrest, a pull-down footrest, and wider armrests than in coach. The middle armrest, which I shared with my neighbour, had a built-in space for a drink. The tray table came out of this armrest. The magazine rack was roomier than in economy, and the seat-back touchscreen display was two inches larger, at 11.1 inches. A USB port and a handset with a screen were below this, the latter allowing you to watch the flight map at the same time as the movies. The Vera entertainment system had an excellent range of about 80 films, plenty of TV, music and games, and a seat-chat function, which I tried out later in the flight – it was very easy to use. Wifi cost £5 for 40MB of data or £15 for 150MB. There was also in-seat power.”