Virgin Atlantic Adds Flights To Maldives, Turks & Caicos

Two new long haul routes have been announced by Virgin Atlantic. Go over the details.

Virgin Atlantic adding London to Maldives route

There will be a new 3x weekly flight between London Heathrow and Male. The flight will only operate during the winter. As of November 30, 2022, tickets are expected to be on sale.

A total of 258 seats will be available on the flight. Business class seats include 31 and premium economy seats include 35.

British Airways operates an identical route year-round on the same route that Virgin Atlantic will be competing on. During the peak season, the route operates daily with a Boeing 777, and 3 times weekly in the off-season with a Boeing 787-9.

Virgin Atlantic adding London to Turks & Caicos route

A new 2x weekly flight will be launched by Virgin Atlantic on November 15, 2023. There will be a flight every year. The exact schedule hasn't been revealed, but tickets are expected to go on sale on January 11th.

A total of 258 seats will be available on the flight. Business class seats include 31 and premium economy seats include 35.

British Airways and Virgin Atlantic will compete on this route. British Airways only flies to Providenciales via Nassau. The route operates daily during peak season and 3 times weekly in the off season.

My take on Virgin Atlantic’s sunny expansion

After pulling out of Gatwick Airport at the start of the Pandemic, Virgin Atlantic has consolidated its London-area service to Heathrow Airport. The biggest challenge for Virgin Atlantic is the limited number of slots at Heathrow.

When Virgin Atlantic adds a route, the question isn't whether the route is profitable, but how profitable it is compared to other routes. I see it in a different way.

• A seasonal flight to the Maldives in winter makes sense, given that there’s otherwise less transatlantic demand that time of year; for SkyTeam and Virgin Atlantic flyers, this will also likely be one of the best ways to get from the United States to the Maldives
• On the surface the service to Turks & Caicos makes sense; I do find it interesting that British Airways can seemingly only make Turks & Caicos service work through Nassau, despite having so much more short haul connecting traffic, while Virgin Atlantic will operate the route nonstop from the UK
• I suspect these flights will be heavily booked through Virgin Holidays, so that people can book vacation packages that include flights and hotels; the strength of that is a competitive advantage for Virgin Atlantic

Bottom line

Two new routes have been announced by VirginAtlantic. A year-round flight to Turks & Caicos and a seasonal winter flight to theMaldives will be offered by the airline in the late 20th century.

For winter, demand between the United States and the United Kingdom isn't as strong as it is in the summer. I would like to know if these routes last in the long run.

What do you think about Virgin Atlantic's new routes?