Virgin Atlantic expands its Indian routes with new London-Bengaluru flight and plans for a second Mumbai route, solidifying its strategic market presence.
UK-based carrier Virgin Atlantic began a new daily flight from London to Bengaluru on April 1.
The airline also announced the addition of a second daily direct flight from London Heathrow to Mumbai beginning in October 2024. The airline’s new route to Mumbai will be its fifth daily service to India.
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According to a report in Times of India, Virgin Atlantic will offer more than one million seats to India beginning in 2025, representing a 350 per cent increase in capacity since 2019. As per the airline, this will solidify the country’s status as a vital strategic market while also representing its largest region of expansion outside of the United States.
“Alongside customer flying, the increase is also a huge boost for cargo operations with additional capacity to support the movement of goods from the fashion, pharmaceuticals, and tech sectors. With five daily services, Virgin Atlantic Cargo will offer over 40 million kg of space to and from India, a 336% increase in capacity versus 2019,” the airline said as quoted by Times of India.
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The airline’s cutting-edge 787-9 Dreamliner, which will be used for the new services, will give passengers the choice of upper-class, Premium, and Economy Delight, Classic and Light in addition to the airline’s renowned Upper-Class social area.
Along with seamless connectivity, it will provide a first-rate long-haul experience for passengers connecting via London Heathrow with Virgin Atlantic and transatlantic joint venture partner Delta Air Lines to and from destinations across North America such as Seattle, San Francisco and New York JFK.
Furthermore, Virgin Atlantic has a strategic alliance with IndiGo, the largest airline in India, in addition to providing direct flights to Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru.
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Customers just need to purchase a single ticket to connect easily to London Heathrow from other Indian locations including Hyderabad, Goa, and Ahmedabad. Since its September 2022 launch, the alliance has connected over 80,000 customers and offers 36 additional locations in total.
This summer, Virgin Atlantic will increase the number of cabin personnel based in India, as per a press release. The airline will now average four Indian cabin staff on each trip via GSA partner InterGlobe Air Transport to provide a more customised service to its Indian customers, the press release added.
