Virgin Atlantic
Airline of the United Kingdom
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| 2024 | Virgin Atlantic continued its growth trajectory, reaching 5.6 million passengers, 24,832 total flights, and maintaining a passenger load factor of 77.0%, with a fleet of 45 aircraft. |
| December 11 2024 | Qatar Airways announced direct routes to Doha from Sydney, Brisbane, and Perth on behalf of Virgin Australia, with ticket bookings opening for travels starting June 2025. |
| April 6 2024 | A ground collision occurred at Heathrow between a British Airways plane and a Virgin Atlantic Boeing 787. Both aircraft suffered wing damage, though Heathrow reported no injuries or delays. |
| November 2023 | Virgin Atlantic announced plans to resume flights to Dubai after a four-year absence. |
| November 28 2023 | Virgin Atlantic successfully operated a test flight between London Heathrow and New York City using 100 percent sustainable aviation fuel on a Boeing 787-9, with no fare-paying passengers. |
| March 2 2023 | Virgin Atlantic officially became a part of SkyTeam airline alliance. |
| January 2023 | Christened a new Airbus A330-900 (G-VEII) as 'Queen of the Skies' in honor of the late Queen Elizabeth II. |
| 2022 | The airline showed signs of recovery post-pandemic, increasing passenger numbers to 4.4 million, total flights to 21,835, and improving passenger load factor to 73.4%. |
| October 2022 | Virgin Atlantic took delivery of its first Airbus A330-900neo, a more efficient version of the A330 family. |
| September 2022 | Virgin Atlantic announced new gender-neutral uniforms designed by Vivienne Westwood, allowing staff to choose between a bright red skirt suit with high heels or a burgundy trouser suit with a grey waistcoat. Staff can also wear a badge indicating their preferred pronoun. |
| September 2022 | Virgin Atlantic updated its ticketing systems to accommodate gender-neutral passports, allowing passengers to use 'U' or 'X' gender markers and the title 'Mx' on reservations, following passport policies in countries like the United States, India, Pakistan, and others. |
| September 27 2022 | Virgin Atlantic announced it would join the SkyTeam airline alliance in early 2023. |
| May 2 2022 | Virgin Atlantic flight VS3, an Airbus A330-343 (G-VWAG) bound for New York's JFK Airport, was forced to turn around over Ireland approximately 35 minutes after takeoff due to a rostering error involving a First Officer who had not fully completed company training. The CAA confirmed the pilot was fully qualified, and the flight resumed after replacing the first officer. |
| March 15 2021 | Virgin Atlantic flight 453, a Boeing 787-9 en route to Tel Aviv from Heathrow, was forced to return to Heathrow after a ground laser attack during takeoff. The flight crew issued an emergency Pan call after the captain lost sight in one eye. No other injuries were reported. |
| 2020 | Virgin Atlantic experienced a dramatic decline in business due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with passenger numbers dropping to 1.1 million, passenger load factor reducing to 49.3%, and total flights decreasing significantly to 6,673. |
| September 4 2020 | Virgin Atlantic announced a second round of job cuts, totaling 1,150 across all departments, effectively halving its workforce due to the COVID-19 pandemic. |
| August 25 2020 | Creditors approved a £1.2bn rescue package and debt restructuring for Virgin Atlantic. |
| August 4 2020 | Virgin Atlantic filed for bankruptcy protection from creditors in the US as part of a recapitalisation and debt restructuring plan. |
| August 4 2020 | Virgin Atlantic filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy protection in New York as part of a £1.2 billion private refinancing package. |
| June 7 2020 | Virgin Atlantic commenced daily cargo-only flights between Brussels Airport and London Heathrow. |
| May 5 2020 | Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Virgin Atlantic announced plans to lay off 3,000 staff, reduce fleet size to 35 by summer 2022, retire Boeing 747-400s, and discontinue operations from Gatwick. |
| March 2020 | Despite a £135 million investment from Connect Airways, Flybe files for administration and ceases operations due to reduced demand during the COVID-19 pandemic and lack of government financial support. |
| March 27 2020 | Virgin Atlantic was expected to seek a government bailout during the COVID-19 pandemic, which was reportedly backed by Rolls-Royce, Airbus, and Heathrow. |
| 2019 | Virgin Atlantic began allowing female flight attendants to not wear makeup and choose between trousers and skirts. |
| December 2019 | Richard Branson cancelled the sale of a 31% stake to Air France-KLM, with Virgin Group retaining its 51% shareholding. Virgin Atlantic also stopped flying to Dubai. |
| December 2019 | The proposed joint venture with Air France-KLM was abandoned without including a stake in the company. |
| October 2019 | Retired the Airbus A340-600 named Emmeline Heaney (G-VYOU). |
| September 2019 | Virgin Atlantic announced plans to expand, which included acquiring Flybe and rebranding it as 'Virgin Connect', but these plans fell through when Flybe ceased operations in March 2020. |
| August 2019 | Virgin Atlantic received its first Airbus A350-1000, introducing this modern wide-body aircraft to its fleet. |
| April 2019 | Announced replacement of the Flying Lady mascot with Flying Icons on Airbus A350-1000, featuring five characters (Daley, Meera/Mei, Oscar, Ray, and Zadie) representing modern Britain. |
| February 21 2019 | Flybe Group confirms the transfer of its operating assets, including the airline and website, to Connect Airways. |
| January 2019 | Shai Weiss becomes Chief Executive of Virgin Atlantic. |
| January 15 2019 | Connect Airways announces an increased offer for Flybe, which is accepted by Flybe's board. |
| January 11 2019 | Virgin Atlantic forms the Connect Airways consortium with Stobart Aviation and Cyrus Capital to make a takeover bid for Flybe, aiming to create an integrated carrier operating under the Virgin Atlantic brand. |
| 2018 | Returned a previously stored Airbus A340-600 (G-VNAP) to active service, renaming it from 'Sleeping Beauty' to 'Sleeping Beauty Rejuvenated' and adding a special 'thank you' livery for employees. |
| 2018 | Craig Kreeger steps down as Chief Executive. |
| July 2017 | Air France-KLM nearly acquired a 31% stake in Virgin Atlantic for £220 million, but the deal did not go through. |
| July 2017 | Virgin Atlantic announced its intention to form a joint venture with Air France-KLM. |
| June 2015 | Richard Branson stated Virgin Atlantic needed the Delta deal to survive after £233 million in losses between 2010-2013. The airline announced it would cut 500 jobs to establish a more efficient management structure. |
| December 29 2014 | A Boeing 747-400 (G-VROM) operating Virgin Atlantic Flight 43 from London Gatwick to Las Vegas returned to Gatwick after an indication that the far right main landing gear was stuck inside the aircraft. The plane landed safely on runway 26L, with investigators finding an inverted actuator caused the landing gear issue. No injuries were reported, and the aircraft returned to service on 11 January 2015. |
| October 2014 | Virgin Atlantic took delivery of its first Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, expanding its fleet with this wide-body aircraft. |
| October 6 2014 | Virgin Atlantic confirmed the termination of Little Red services between London and Manchester by March 2015, and Scottish routes by September 2015. |
| September 2014 | Virgin Atlantic announced plans to scrap flights to Tokyo, Mumbai, Vancouver, and Cape Town, and to codeshare transatlantic flights with Delta Air Lines. |
| May 2014 | Virgin Atlantic ended flights to Sydney. |
| 2013 | Craig Kreeger becomes Chief Executive, succeeding Steve Ridgway. |
| June 24 2013 | Delta Air Lines' purchase of Virgin Atlantic stake was completed. |
| June 20 2013 | Regulatory approval from the United States and European Union was granted for Delta Air Lines' purchase of Virgin Atlantic stake. |
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