operational changes

[mizzy]

having just spoken to virgin about a missing booking on their system i've been informed that due to operational changes my flight VS075 from manchester will now arrive one hour later into MCO at 15.50pm and the same on the return journey home VS076

she said it's because of operational changes that an extra hour has been added to the flight both ways[msneek]

can anyone shed any light on this for me?

am i being stupid in thinking how can it suddenly take an extra hour to get from manchester to mco and back again?

Mizzy

[blott]

Maybe it's because of time (clock) changes in the USA? It's not one of the flights that was due to go via Glasgow by any chance?

Mizzy they build in extra time so you arrive at the scheduled time of arrival rather than being late[msnwink]

eg. flights from Manchester to London only actually take 30 mins but the scheduled time can vary from 55 mins- and hour+ that allows for taxi to runway, holding delays extra[msnwink]

Also with the added security they are propably leaving late more often and by adding an hour to the journey they stand more chance of still arriving on time[msnwink]

Hope this makes sense[msnscared]

[mizzy]

the lady said it still leaves at 10.25am Julie and it's direct to mco

Blott

i've been thinking about it and could it be down to time changes

we fly on the 17th march and the clocks go forward in the uk on the 25th so i'm going to assume this is the partly the reason why (but do the clocks go forwward inthe US earlier than ours?)
also like you say Julie it could be added security etc;

thanks anyway for your help, i knew someone on here would have an idea and be reassuring about it all

it's great this forum[clap][clap][clap]

mizzy

[Y]

HI Mizzy
When we went to florida in early April 2004 the clocks went forward the evening we arrived which was a week after they had changed in the UK.

[bargainqueen]

We are flying home on 17th from Orlando and I was unable to pre book my seat, when I phoned Virgin I was told it was because of the clocks going forward in US. The system couldn't cope with it so it had to be done manually.

[jillizzy]

<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by bargainqueen
We are flying home on 17th from Orlando and I was unable to pre book my seat, when I phoned Virgin I was told it was because of the clocks going forward in US. The system couldn't cope with it so it had to be done manually.


[/quote]

Whenever there are any schedule changes to flights even if it by as little as a minute, your reservation cannot be brought up on line. Once you have called VA they will make manual changes and then it should be seen again.

Mizzy the timing of your flight can be for many reasons, the clocks changing could be one, but there are quite a few changes being made at the moment due to aircraft being re-allocated and re-furbished. It's often just to allow the aircraft to be in the right place at the right time.

My flight to MIA in November had the same issues. We return 70 minutes later than originally planed, this is due to landing slots at LHR not being available at an earlier time and nothing to do with VA.

Jill

[Sniff]

<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by jillizzy
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by bargainqueen
We are flying home on 17th from Orlando and I was unable to pre book my seat, when I phoned Virgin I was told it was because of the clocks going forward in US. The system couldn't cope with it so it had to be done manually.


[/quote]

Whenever there are any schedule changes to flights even if it by as little as a minute, your reservation cannot be brought up on line. Once you have called VA they will make manual changes and then it should be seen again.
[/quote]

I'm not 100% familiar with the Virgin systems, but that sounds like they are fobbing you off with an excuse in my opinion.

We host hundreds of airline schedules and millions of fares, and if the passenger reservations were unavailable everytime time something changed (which happens thousands of times a day across our system) then we'd be out of business in a week.

As far as the clock settings go, no-one in their right mind relies on local times - the systems all run on GMT, all the year round. Local time changing is therefore just data, and again should never lock out passenger reservations.

If that is truly the case then Virgin need to bring their systems into the 20th Century - and quick!

[Sniff]

A little more info on DST. US are changing the DST dates in 2007 (although it still shouldn't lock out the systems!)

DST is generally a temperate zone practice; day lengths in the tropics do not vary enough to justify DST. Hawaii and Arizona will be the only U.S. states that do not observe DST after 2006. Before and during 2006, parts of Southern Indiana (Dubois County and surrounding counties) did not participate in DST.

The amount of the time shift varies, but one hour is the most common. The dates of the beginning and ending of DST also vary by country. With a few exceptions, switchovers between standard time and DST generally occur in the early hours of a Sunday morning, because doing so then causes less disruption than a change on a weekday would.

DST commonly begins in the northern hemisphere on the last Sunday in March or the first Sunday in April, and ends on the last Sunday in October. However, beginning in 2007, the United States will begin observing DST from the second Sunday in March until the first Sunday in November. If no energy savings can be shown from the extension after the U.S. Department of Energy completes a study of impact of the change, Congress may revert back to the schedule set in 1986 under Section 110 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005. Since 2002, the European Union has fixed the last Sunday in March and the last Sunday in October as start and end dates (European Summer Time).

[jillizzy]

<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by Sniff
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by jillizzy
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by bargainqueen
We are flying home on 17th from Orlando and I was unable to pre book my seat, when I phoned Virgin I was told it was because of the clocks going forward in US. The system couldn't cope with it so it had to be done manually.


[/quote]

Whenever there are any schedule changes to flights even if it by as little as a minute, your reservation cannot be brought up on line. Once you have called VA they will make manual changes and then it should be seen again.
[/quote]

I'm not 100% familiar with the Virgin systems, but that sounds like they are fobbing you off with an excuse in my opinion.

We host hundreds of airline schedules and millions of fares, and if the passenger reservations were unavailable everytime time something changed (which happens thousands of times a day across our system) then we'd be out of business in a week.

As far as the clock settings go, no-one in their right mind relies on local times - the systems all run on GMT, all the year round. Local time changing is therefore just data, and again should never lock out passenger reservations.

If that is truly the case then Virgin need to bring their systems into the 20th Century - and quick!

[/quote]

The booking would still be able to be seen by VA and any TA that can access the live system - it's just the on-line seat reservation that I was referring to, not the actual booking.

Jill