Virgin Atlantic - the world's sexiest airline?

[Brilliant]

Virgin Atlantic want to buy another 10 A380s or B747s.

[Langur]

Virgin Atlantic to go twice daily to Hong Kong
http://www.virgin-atlantic.com/en/gb.../pr120608a.jsp

Virgin Atlantic, one of the world’s leading long-haul airlines, is to increase its frequency between London Heathrow and Hong Kong from daily to twice a day. The extra services will lead to the creation of 100 new cabin crew roles.

The new, second service on a A340-600 will boost the number of seats available on the booming Heathrow-Hong Kong route and open up fresh opportunities for those passengers wishing to connect to other cities in China, or the wider Far East. It will also provide greater flexibility for stopovers, for those passengers wanting to break their journey if travelling to or from Sydney.

From 28 October 2008, flight VS238 will operate three times a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and then operate daily from 4 December 2008. VS238 will depart London Heathrow Terminal 3 at 16.00, arriving in Hong Kong at 12.30pm the following afternoon.

Flight VS239 will operate between Hong Kong and London Heathrow on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays from 29 October 2008, and then operate daily from 5 December 2008. VS239 will depart Hong Kong at 14.15, arriving at London Heathrow at 19.20 the same day.

Steve Ridgway, Chief Executive of Virgin Atlantic, said:

"East is the new West and this second daily service will offer our passengers even more opportunities via Hong Kong, which is the third busiest long-haul route out of Heathrow after New York’s JFK and Dubai. Virgin Atlantic, which is highly committed to the city and the Pearl River Delta, has flown well over 2 million passengers on this route since we started flying in 1994 and it remains one of our most popular services. We offer a big thankyou to the Hong Kong Airport authorities for helping to make this extra service a reality."

The second service will complement Virgin Atlantic’s existing daily service, which connects London Heathrow with Hong Kong and Sydney. Flight VS200 leaves Heathrow daily at 22.30, arriving in Hong Kong at 17.50 the following day, before then departing Hong Kong at 19.20 and arriving in Sydney at 06.35 the following day. Flight VS201 leaves Sydney at 14.25, arriving in Hong Kong at 21.55. It then departs Hong Kong at 23.25 before arriving at London Heathrow at 05.25 the following morning.

Virgin Atlantic currently flies to 30 destinations worldwide from its award-winning new Terminal 3 at Heathrow Airport, and from the South Terminal at London’s Gatwick Airport. Destinations include Shanghai, Nairobi, Dubai, Mumbai, Delhi, Lagos, Tokyo, New York JFK and Newark, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Orlando, San Francisco, Miami, Sydney, Washington, Boston, Chicago, Barbados, Antigua, Havana and Kingston.



This is good news. This additional frequency will replace the lost Oasis service. It's not as cheap of course but it will be more sustainable in the long run. London to Hong Kong will go back to having 11 daily non-stop services:

Cathay Pacific = 4 daily
British Airways = 3 daily
Virgin Atlantic = 2 daily
Air New Zealand = 1 daily
Qantas = 1 daily
Total = 11 daily

[Steel City Suburb]

In reply to the title, Virgin is the most sexiest airline without doubt.

Good customer service, good planes and lots of TV channels

[Harkeb]

Never flown Virgin, but would love to. Best livery. It's Young and Hip.

[GlasgowMan]

Virgin Atlantic commits to ten new Airbus A330
British based Virgin Atlantic Airways, has signed a firm contract to buy six Airbus A330-300 long-range aircraft, and is leasing a further four from AerCap. Fleet renewal with the A330 reflects Virgin’s commitment to replace older aircraft and to invest in the worlds’ most environmentally efficient fleet.

Virgin’s A330-300s can seat up to 270 in Upper Class, Premium Economy and Economy, and introduce revolutionary onboard cabin products and innovations for every passenger. The aircraft will allow Virgin to offer enhanced services between the United Kingdom and the United States and the Caribbean, for the business as well as the leisure traveller.

- The A330s will be a great addition to our modern and fuel efficient fleet and will also add immense operational flexibility as well as offer revolutionary new cabin products. At the same time, the A330s fits with Virgin’s commitment to invest in the worlds’ most environmentally efficient aircraft.” said Steve Ridgway, CEO Virgin Atlantic Airways.

- We are delighted with this very significant commitment to the A330 from one of Airbus’ most valued customers,” said John Leahy, Airbus Chief Operating Officer Customers.

- As well as offering unparalleled reliability, the A330 has the lowest fuel burn per seat making it the most eco-efficient aircraft in its class. We are honoured that a world class carrier like Virgin has chosen a world-class aircraft for its fleet.”

Virgin Atlantic Airways became an Airbus operator in November 1993 with its first A340-300. To date, Virgin operates six A340-300s and 19 A340-600 aircraft. Virgin is also a customer for six A380s.

The twin engine A330 is one of the most widely used wide body aircraft in service today. To date, Airbus has won more than 1,000 orders for the various versions of the aircraft. More than 600 A330s have already been delivered and the aircraft is currently flying with over 70 airlines worldwide.

[poshbakerloo]

since when was an airline sexy!?

[Leeds No.1]

Anything can be sexy these days, and Virgin Atlantic is certainly the sexiest airline.

[SagaCity]

It's definately the sexiest airline for me baby!

I fly to HK regularly and have used several different services including direct flights with Cathay Pacific or BA and multi-hop ones with Air France and KLM. I've even tried the low cost Oasis when it was still running. I have got to say that Virgin have the best balance of good pricing, decent service and flights from convenient locations.

The on board on-demand entertainment is the thing that really blows away the opposition for me, since I haven't seen any entertainment as good as Virgin's on any of the other airlines I've flown on. Only a small niggle though, on more recent flights the entertainment system does seem a bit temporamental and crashes and hangs. Though, this only happens on their older planes and I my guess is that they will be up for replacement in the not too distant future.

[GlasgowMan]

Virgin Atlantic to be official airline for England World Cup squad

Virgin Atlantic has announced its role as the official airline for England's 2010 World Cup squad.

The carrier revealed that it will be providing the team with its own Airbus A340-600 plane, which will carry manager Fabio Capello, the 23-man squad and several key support staff.

A number of onboard amenities will be available to the passengers in Virgin Atlantic's upper class suite, including a state-of-the-art entertainment system and a menu specifically tailored to players' requirements.

The aircraft will fly direct from London Heathrow to Johannesburg on 2 June, ahead of the start of the tournament on 11 June.

Sir Richard Branson, president of Virgin Atlantic, said: 'It is a great honour for Virgin Atlantic to be carrying the England team to Johannesburg.

'We are thrilled they have chosen to fly with Virgin Atlantic on our award-winning upper class suite and promise they will be looked after in style by our world-class cabin crew, so that when they arrive in Johannesburg they are fit and ready to take on the world.'

Ian Watmore, chief executive of the FA, described the partnership between the England team and Virgin Atlantic as a 'winning combination', adding: 'I hope that bodes well for the tournament.'

[Salif]

EasyJet missed out then

[OperateOnMe]

Would definetly be if she was still working for Virgin:


But now, maybe sexiest



But I'm sure 'some' on this forum would say: Pikachu Airlines


Or, for the men: Hooters Air

[Vrooms]

VIRGIN ATLANTIC

[Steel City Suburb]

Brilliant advert, the adverts are actually brilliant to watch.

[Bart_LCY]

It's kinda like opening for a James Bond movie And I like it!

[Vrooms]

I like it too!! Something different from what other airlines show on their adverts.

[Vrooms]

A older ad by Virgin Atlantic

[Vrooms]

http://www.cardatabase.net/modifieda...g/00011325.jpg

[hkskyline]

Branson will bale out of Virgin airline
19 December 2010
The Sunday Times

SIR RICHARD BRANSON is preparing to relinquish control of Virgin Atlantic as the price for attracting a new investor in the airline.

The British tycoon wants to expand the carrier with fresh shareholders but is unlikely to attract much interest from rivals unless he hands over majority ownership of the company he founded in 1984.

He currently holds 51% of the shares, with Singapore Airlines owning the remaining 49% stake.

Branson recently instructed advisers at Deutsche Bank to review the future of Virgin Atlantic following British Airways' tie-up with American Airlines and its merger with Spain's Iberia.

He fears Virgin could be left behind in the consolidation of the airline industry and is exploring a range of strategic options with rival carriers, including joint marketing agreements and the possible sale of shares.

Virgin is not a member of any of the industry's three big code-sharing alliances, but industry sources say it is most likely to join the Star Alliance, featuring Lufthansa, BMI British Midland and United Airlines, or SkyTeam, which is led by Delta and Air France. In a recent interview, Branson acknowledged that becoming part of such an alliance looked increasingly inevitable for Virgin.

Sources close to the negotiations say there have been no approaches for Virgin yet but Delta and Air France are likely to team up to fight it out for majority control with Lufthansa in partnership with United next year.

Last year, Virgin held tie-up talks with Delta and BMI. Branson made an approach to Delta but failed to clinch a deal. Lufthansa, meanwhile, bought BMI.

With Branson's plans at an early stage and the structure of any deal undecided, it is unclear what Virgin would be valued at. Analyst estimates range from £500m to £1 billion. Even at the top end of the range, a deal is likely to result in a loss for Singapore, which is keen to exit. It paid £600m for its holding in 1999.

[hkskyline]

Requests Virgin on the ridiculous
18 December 2010
The Daily Mirror

SOME passengers will stop at nothing to blag an upgrade.

Virgin Atlantic recently surveyed 3,000 of its cabin crew and ground staff and unearthed an array of fantastic reasons why travellers felt they should be given a ticket to the swanky Upper Class cabin.

Here are the top five: 1 "My wife is pregnant; I need an upgrade as it is a really stressful time for me."

2 "Manchester United lost today, I am really upset and need the space to get over it."

3 "My newborn baby has claustrophobia, she is in counselling and we really need an upgrade so she has more space."

4 "I am Sir Richard Branson's dentist."

5 "We are getting married today."

(The couple turned up in full wedding attire).

Virgin Atlantic's Paul Dickinson said: "In truth, free upgrades are rarely offered and the only way to be certain of experiencing what our cabins have to offer is to book the cabin you want in advance - and there are often some great deals to be had.

"If on the rare occasion we do need to offer an upgrade, we usually prioritise our most loyal customers from our frequent flyer programme."

[Vrooms]

Source:http://www.businesstraveller.com/new...ote-iphone-app

Virgin releases viral to promote iPhone app
Published: 21/12/2010 - Filed under: News »


Virgin Atlantic has released a You Tube video to promote its Flight Tracker iPhone app, starring Alex MacQueen of The Inbetweeners and The Thick Of It fame.

The comic love story sees MacQueen’s character Terry telling of his affections for “Rose” as he follows her around the world thanks to Virgin’s updated iPhone app.

The app, which was originally launched earlier this year, includes features such as the ability to check in for flights, follow the location of Virgin’s fleet of aircraft in real time, display Flying Club tier points and transactions, and play games including directing Sir Richard Branson’s hot air balloon between airports.

To download the Virgin Atlantic Flight Tracker app, click here.

Visit virgin-atlantic.com.