Flyertalk Virgin Atlantic (2025)

FAQs

What has happened to Virgin Atlantic? ›

Virgin Atlantic joined SkyTeam in March 2023 as the global airline alliance's first and only UK member airline, enhancing the alliance's transatlantic network and services to and from Heathrow and Manchester Airport.

Losses before tax and exceptional items narrowed to (£139) million from (£206) million in the previous year and Virgin Atlantic is on course to return to profitability in 2024. Virgin Atlantic ended the year with a robust cash position of £406 million, up from £399 million in 2022.

Shai Weiss, CEO of Virgin Atlantic, at the Bloomberg Sustainable Business Summit in London, June 28, 2023. Virgin Atlantic CEO Shai Weiss says he understands why many air travelers are cranky.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Virgin Atlantic Airways experienced a drastic decline in the number of passengers, which amounted to only 1.14 million in 2020 and 1.07 million in 2021. As of 2022, the airline company was uplifted 4.15 million travelers.

Weaknesses: financial track record, unit cost, load factor, lack of growth and scale, network weakness outside North Atlantic.

LONDON, April 3 (Reuters) - Richard Branson's Virgin Atlantic said on Wednesday it would return to profitability this year after strong demand from holiday makers drove revenue up by 265 million pounds ($333 million) to a record 3.1 billion pounds in 2023.

“Belief, determination and conviction ensured our survival,” Virgin Atlantic CEO Shai Weiss said, reflecting on the airline's rough ride through the pandemic. However, since then Virgin has cut £300 million ($380 million) from its annual cost base and is on track for a profitable 2024.

Virgin Atlantic is a British carrier. Travellers rate it 8.2/10 on average, indicating exceptional service. This rating is superior the average of other carriers. Over the last 12 months, the average rating has been decreasing.

Full Year 2022 Financial Results Summary

Virgin Atlantic ended the year with a strong cash position of £399m and is set up for a year of delivery in 2023, having paid down £92m of debt and purchased three slot pairs at London Heathrow.

Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson (born 18 July 1950) is an English business magnate best known for co-founding the Virgin Group in 1970, which today controls more than 400 companies in various fields. Branson expressed his desire to become an entrepreneur at a young age.

Who is the virgin billionaire? ›

Richard Branson owes his fortune to a conglomerate of businesses bearing the "Virgin" brand name, including Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Galactic. The son of a barrister and flight attendant, Branson got his start with a mail-order record business some 50 years ago.

When comparing Virgin Atlantic versus British Airways, British Airways handily wins the prize for most destinations served. British Airways flies to over six times as many destinations as Virgin Atlantic and more than double the U.S. destinations.

Virgin Atlantic Ltd (Virgin Atlantic), a subsidiary of Virgin Group Ltd, is a British airlines company that provides domestic, international flight, and other services. The company also offers holiday packages and cargo services.

Our transatlantic routes provide frequent, direct flights between the UK and your favourite US cities and Caribbean getaways.

In April 2020 Virgin was put into administration, owing $6.8b to 12,000 creditors. The shareholders were wiped out completely and in September 2020 the creditors agreed to a debt restructure and sale of the remnants to US private equity group Bain.

Once having a 49% share of the airline owned by Singapore Airlines, this was sold to American carrier Delta Air Lines in 2012, looking to create a transatlantic joint venture. Virgin also attempted to sell a further 31% stake to Air France-KLM in 2017.