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Dave

Virgin Atlantic to resume daily flights to Shanghai, boosting travel opportunities for UK business travellers

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Virgin Atlantic is set to restart its highly anticipated flights to Shanghai, renewing vital business and leisure connections between the United Kingdom and China.

The daily service will resume on 1 May, 2023, with fares starting from £432 per person, making it an affordable option for UK business travellers looking to connect with their Chinese counterparts.

This move comes in the wake of relaxed travel restrictions between the two countries, which now allow foreign nationals to enter China for the first time since 23 December 2020.

Melting pot: Shanghai is one of the world’s most important financial centres

Shanghai is Virgin Atlantic’s final route to be reinstated following the global pandemic, having been affected by suspensions and closures since 1 February, 2020.

Since the restart announcement earlier this year, there has been a surge in demand for both business and leisure travel in both directions.

China is a crucial trading partner for the UK, and as the country’s largest city, the relaunched route will be an important connector for the UK and China. Shanghai boasts a world-renowned commercial and financial centre with one of the world’s largest cargo hubs. Furthermore, the city offers UK tourists a melting pot of culture, from the futuristic skyline of Pudong district to the traditional pavilions in Yu Gardens.

Virgin Atlantic’s Shanghai flights will operate on a Boeing 787-9, offering a range of experiences across three cabins; Upper Class, Premium, and three classes of Economy – Delight, Classic, and Light. This means that UK business travellers can enjoy a comfortable and affordable journey to China’s most populous city.

Juha Jarvinen, Chief Commercial Officer at Virgin Atlantic said,

The restart of our services to Shanghai is a major milestone for Virgin Atlantic. Shanghai was the first of our routes to be suspended in 2020 at the start of the global pandemic and the last to return, making it the final piece to restore our flying programme to full capacity.

After such a long hiatus, we’re looking forward to welcoming our customers back to Shanghai and providing vital links to one of the UK’s largest trading partners, for both passenger and cargo services.”

In addition to its direct flights to Shanghai, Virgin Atlantic also offers connections to its new SkyTeam partner, China Eastern, which has a hub in the city. This partnership provides Virgin Atlantic customers with a wide range of connections throughout China and beyond, making it easier for UK business travellers to reach their destination.

Flying Club members will soon have the opportunity to earn and redeem Virgin Points across China Eastern’s flying programme, along with many other SkyTeam partners. This makes it even easier for UK business travellers to earn rewards while travelling for work.

In conclusion, the resumption of Virgin Atlantic’s flights to Shanghai is a welcome development for UK business travellers looking to connect with their Chinese counterparts. With competitive fares, comfortable flights, and access to a wide range of connections, this route is set to become an essential part of any UK business traveller’s itinerary.

Customers travelling to China will need to show proof of a negative PCR test before they enter the country, alongside a health declaration form. 


Dave

Virgin Atlantic and Korean Air announce codeshare agreement for seamless travel to Asia and Australasia

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Virgin Atlantic has exciting news for its customers as it announces the launch of a new codeshare agreement with Korean Air.

This will offer customers more opportunities to fly seamlessly to South Korea and beyond. The agreement is set to launch on 25 March, and customers booking through Virgin Atlantic will have the opportunity to travel directly to Incheon Airport, in South Korea’s capital, Seoul.

But that’s not all, as the agreement will be expanded to include further destinations in Asia and Australasia from June. Customers will be able to connect onwards from Seoul to a variety of destinations throughout Japan, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Australia, and New Zealand. Virgin Atlantic is confident that this codeshare agreement with Korean Air is the first step towards its entry to Seoul and is set to enhance the airline’s network in Asia.

Virgin Atlantic’s recent enrollment into the SkyTeam alliance further enhances customers benefits. Customers can earn and redeem Virgin Points and take advantage of SkyPriority benefits. As one of the founding members of the SkyTeam alliance, Korean Air is an excellent partner for Virgin Atlantic in the codeshare agreement.

From May, services to Shanghai, China will resume, alongside an expanded codeshare with IndiGo throughout India and beyond. Flying Club members will be able to take advantage of SkyPriority services at Seoul Incheon, including priority check-in, baggage handling, and boarding.

Virgin Atlantic Chief Commercial Officer, Juha Jarvinen, said,

We’re pleased to launch a codeshare with Korean Air, as we know such agreements bring an array of benefits to our customers.  As one of Asia’s major carriers, Virgin Atlantic customers can benefit from its extensive route network, that will offer more choice throughout Asia and Australasia. 

Our enrolment into SkyTeam, of which Korean Air is a founding member, enhances customers benefits further. Our Flying Club members can enjoy SkyPriority benefits at both London Heathrow and Seoul Incheon as well as earning and redeeming miles across Korean Air’s network.

This codeshare agreement between Virgin Atlantic and Korean Air is something for business travellers to look forward to.

Dave

How airlines are marking Pride Month

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June marks Pride Month – we have taken a look at how some airlines are marking the celebration

Lufthansa

Lovehansa: June 2022’s ‘Lovehansa’ livery

To mark Pride Month, Lufthansa is taking off with a very special aircraft to destinations throughout Europe.

The Airbus A320neo with the registration D-AINY will become “Lovehansa” for the next six months.

On the outside of the aircraft, the Lufthansa livery has been replaced by a specially-designed “Lovehansa” marque, painted in the colours of the rainbow.

The welcome panel at the entrance will also have a special rainbow design.

Rainbow seats: onboard the Lovehansa

In addition, when looking out of the aircraft window, hearts in rainbow colours can be seen on the winglets. The first flight of the “Lovehansa” took place on 10 June to Billund in Denmark (LH842).

Lufthansa claims it is ‘a company that stands for openness, diversity and understanding’. And, with the “Lovehansa” special livery, ‘the company is sending another clear signal and making this important part of its corporate culture prominent and visible to the outside world’.

Virgin Atlantic

A three-year sponsorship of Manchester Pride – the UK’s largest Pride event – is probably the most public celebration of the LGBT+ community from Virgin Atlantic.

Pride: Manchester Pride’s CEO, Mark Fletcher (middle), with crew announces Virgin Atlantic’s three-year headline sponsorship of the festival

Virgin Atlantic are also the first-ever sponsor, in a ten-year agreement, of the Attitude Awards.

In 2020 the airline entered a multiyear partnership with Open for Business, launching the Caribbean Local Influencer Program to champion the business rationale for LGBTQ+ inclusion across the islands. The two-phased approach to the partnership with Open for Business consists of a research phase to understand business and socioeconomic impact of excluding the LGBTQ+ community, and a second phase to build a network of business leaders and civil society, using the research to advance LGBTQ+ rights and inclusion.

But on an individual level, Chief Commercial Officer Juha Jarvinen, has written eloquently and from the heart about his experiences in the corporate world, in a blog piece:

In the workplace, organisations that will thrive in the future are those which put inclusivity at the heart of their strategy. At Virgin Atlantic, we live by our purpose – everyone can take on the world – and we take inclusion and diversity seriously. To me, it’s so important that we foster a culture of belonging and actively encourage every single one of our people to be themselves at work every day. After years of not wanting to divulge my sexuality at work or in business networks, joining this airline in 2019 was a breath of fresh air. About one month into my role, I was asked to share an introductory post on our internal communications platform, Workplace, and it was the first time in my career that I’d felt comfortable and proud sharing exactly who I was: ‘Juha, a Finnish-born 43-year old with a love of travel, running & hot yoga, and lastly – but most importantly – happily married to my husband, Jussi’.

United

United Airlines ‘recognise, embrace and celebrate the differences that make our customers and employees unique’.

EQUAL: United’s inclusive business resource group that benefits lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and ally coworkers.

United also claim to be ‘committed to creating an inclusive work environment while contributing to the diverse communities we serve. As a part of this mission, we believe it’s important to support the LGBTQ+ community by upholding inclusive policies and practices, partnering with LGBTQ+ organisations, and hosting programmes and engagement events to honour the LGBTQ+ community’.

United maintain sponsorships of, and relationships with, several organisations:

JetBlue

JetBlue is commemorating Pride Month with a series of special events and support for various LGBTQ+ organisations and partners throughout the month of June… and beyond.

Icema Gibbs, vice president CSR and DEI, JetBlue said,

At JetBlue, we believe the LGBTQ+ community should be supported year round, beyond Pride month, and we will continue to stand for the right for every crewmember and customer to feel safe and valued—while ensuring we are marching towards a more equal, inclusive and just world.

Gender-inclusive: JetBlue’s uniform and hair and makeup policy offers crewmembers a combination of uniform pieces, rather than pre-selected items based on binary gender terms.

JetBlue is a long-time supporter of The Stonewall Inn Gives Back Initiative (SIGBI), which leverages the historic significance of the New York City LGBTQ+ landmark to help other communities that don’t have the same LGBTQ+ resources or support.

The airline continues to serve as the official airline of The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center – known locally as The Center. Since 1983, The Center has been supporting, fostering and celebrating the LGBTQ+ community of New York City and empowers people to lead healthy, successful lives. 

And last year, JetBlue rolled out ‘a new uniform policy with a vast range of apparel and hair and makeup preferences for all crewmembers, regardless of race/ethnicity, gender, age and body type’. By adopting a gender-inclusive program, JetBlue ensures that all crewmembers, regardless of gender identity, can feel represented.

Cape Air

Cape Air, is an airline headquartered at Barnstable Municipal Airport in Hyannis, Massachusetts, operating scheduled passenger services in the Northeast, the Caribbean, Midwest, and Eastern Montana.

Cape Air: a Pride-themed plane to its fleet for June. Pic: PROVINCETOWN BANNER/TAMORA ISRAEL

The airline introduced a Pride-themed plane at a media event hosted at Provincetown Municipal Airport.

Linda Markham, Cape Air CEO said

Putting a Pride flag not only on the wings, but on the tail of the plane means so much to us because we’re such a diverse organisation and we really want to celebrate inclusivity and equality.

American Airlines

KLM

Delta Air Lines

easyJet

Alaska Airlines

Dave

Virgin Atlantic returns to daily Heathrow-Cape Town flights

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Virgin Atlantic has announced its return to Cape Town.

A new daily service starts on 5 November 2022 and the service will operate on a Boeing 787-9 with Virgin stating fares start from £711 return in Economy.

The aircraft boasts three classes, Upper Class, Premium and Economy offering different experiences for customers as well as the airline’s world-famous social space.

The new winter service runs until 24t March 2022 and will complement the existing year-round daily service to Johannesburg. 

The airline stated that ‘with demand for travel increasing’ passengers can ‘take full advantage of the beautiful destination with easier access than ever before’.

Business travellers often extend their trips to take in Robin Island, where customers can visit the prison where Nelson Mandela was held; and some wish to challenge their adventurous side by riding the cable cars to Table Mountain’s flat top for sweeping views of the city.

Cape Town is the gateway to the Cape Winelands, the country’s top region for wine tasting tours. 

Juha Jarvinen, Chief Commercial Officer at Virgin Atlantic commented:  

We’re incredibly excited to return to the fabulous city of Cape Town with daily services from November. 

Although a little later than we we’d have liked due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the move reflects the fact that travel is recovering and global demand for holidays to sunny, premium destinations is returning at pace.

We’re expecting a high proportion of leisure travellers on this route who will rightly be taking advantage of the winter sun, exploring the world-renowned wine regions and soaking up the rich culture this incredible country has to offer.

Route facts

Virgin Atlantic was founded by entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson in 1984, with innovation and amazing customer service at its core. In 2021, Virgin Atlantic was voted Britain’s only Global Five Star Airline by APEX for the fifth year running in the Official Airline Ratings. 
Dave

Virgin Atlantic launches new services to Austin, Texas

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Virgin Atlantic is launching new direct services to Austin, the capital of the Lonestar state of Texas and the airline’s first new route to the US since 2015.

The four times a week service will launch on 25 May 2022 and will operate on the airline’s 787-9 aircraft boasting 31 Upper Class, 35 Premium and 192 Economy Delight, Classic and Light seats.

Austin is the fourth most populated city in the state with 7.7million passengers travelling through the airport in 2019. The city is known as the “live music capital of the world” and is famed for its art and foodie scene as well as a wide range of outdoors activities.

Austin is also known as a growing tech hub with businesses such as Apple, Tesla, Facebook, IBM and Oracle all opening up bases, giving the city the nickname “Silicon Hills”.  This booming region is a key focus for Virgin Atlantic and its expanded joint venture partners, with Delta Air Lines offering connections from Austin to 10 US cities, Seattle, Los Angeles, Salt Lake City, Detroit, Minneapolis, Cincinnati, Atlanta, Raleigh Durham, JFK. KLM also looks forward to launching three-times weekly services from Amsterdam to Austin on 28t March 2022 offering even more choice for customers both side of the Atlantic to connect between the US and Europe.

Juha Jarvinen, Chief Commercial Officer at Virgin Atlantic commented: 

We are incredibly excited to launch this new service to Austin, Texas. With an impressive food, arts and music scene, we know it’s a destination our customers will love to explore.

The US has been our heartland for more than 37 years since our first flight to New York City in 1984. Since US borders opened to UK travellers on 8 November, it feels extra special to be launching new flying, especially to the fantastic city of Austin.

There are so many synergies between Virgin Atlantic and the city of Austin. We love their philosophy and desire to celebrate local brands, businesses and communities and we cannot wait to welcome customers, both existing and new onboard, flying them safely to explore this fabulously quirky city.

Jacqueline Yaft , CEO, Austin-Bergstrom International Airport commented:

We are thrilled to welcome Virgin Atlantic to Austin and Central Texas. This exciting new partnership helps meet our goals of continued recovery from the impacts of the pandemic and furthers our commitment to being the Gateway of Central Texas for both leisure and business travelers alike.

As Virgin Atlantic recovers from the pandemic, the airline continues to work towards its vision of becoming the most loved travel company. With new Caribbean services to St Vincent and the Grenadines, Bahamas and St Lucia as well as new flying from Edinburgh to Barbados launching tin 2021, the airline is focussed on serving the destinations we know our customers love to visit. Later this year, Virgin Atlantic will be the first UK airline to receive the A330neo aircraft which not only boasts a step change to its Upper Class Suite and social space for customers but will help transform the fleet into one of the quietest and most fuel efficient in the sky.

Flights are on sale from Wednesday 12 January.

To help customers book with confidence, Virgin Atlantic has extended its policy of unlimited free date and flight changes for new bookings, giving further flexibility to customers to support future travel plans.  The updated flexible booking policy enables Virgin Atlantic customers making a new holiday or flight-only booking for travel up to 31 December 2022, to make as many changes as necessary to their travel dates, origin or destination, with the change fees waived, as well as one free name change.