How To Get a Free 'Upgrade' to EconomyX on Virgin Domestic Flights

Back in March 2017, Virgin Australia introduced a new premium offering called EconomyX, which basically provides some additional leg room and a way to upsell what was previously the bulkhead and exit rows on the domestic fleet.

The domestic 777 fleet has 30 EconomyX seats available (2 rows over the wings and 3 rows behind the bulkhead). One great thing about the introduction of EconomyX was that despite the $29 charge to select the seats, Virgin offer them for free to all Platinum Frequent Flyers, which is a great perk if you hold the airlines top-tier status.

How to get a free Upgrade without Platinum status

Disclaimer: This probably only works if you hold Silver or Gold status

I happened to have an interesting conversation with an agent at the desk in one of the Virgin lounges about EconomyX and she was saying that once the flight gets past a certain loading, they are allowed to allocate the EconomyX seats to anyone to assist with balancing the plane.

So if you happen to be on a relatively full flight, it is worth going up to the counter and simply asking "Is there a better seat available" I have managed to do this 3 times so far and had great luck every time.

This method certainly isn't foolproof and your mileage will vary, but it is always worth asking. I also suspect that it helps if you are a Gold or Silver Velocity member as well.

So what is EconomyX like?

EconomyX was an interesting addition to the Virgin fleet and certainly a way to maximise the potential revenue for a little extra leg room! I was quite impressed when the launched the product that they actually went to the effort of branding the headrests with a shiny EconomyX logo!

Other than the additional leg room, there really isn't much special about EconomyX. But in saying that, considering how cramped economy seats are these days the extra legroom is very welcome.

Whilst not a massive increase in seat pitch, 31" to 34", it is certainly noticeable and does mean you can stretch out a little.