Virgin Atlantic

British Airways may have announced yet another route to the US yesterday, but Virgin Atlantic has just stolen all the thunder in the UK by announcing that it plans to launch services to the Maldives and the Turks & Caicos Islands in 2023.

Virgin Atlantic was excited to announce that it will join the SkyTeam alliance in 2023 earlier today but what it hasn't come out and told its flyers is that it won't be launching its new A330-900neo aircraft on the originally published schedule - the inaugural flight has been pushed back by a couple of weeks.

Big news in the world of airline loyalty - Virgin Atlantic has announced that it will join the SkyTeam Alliance next year and this means that Virgin Atlantic Flying Club members will soon have access to more routes and more elite benefits when flying with other SkyTeam airlines.

Virgin Atlantic recently unveiled its impressive new Upper Class (Business Class) cabin that will debut on its new A330neo aircraft and at the same unveiling, the airline also gave us a look at what the Premium (Premium Economy) cabin will look like on the same aircraft.

Last night, I was fortunate enough to attend the unveiling of the new Virgin Atlantic Upper Class seat that will debut on the airline's new A330-900neo aircraft so, for once, I didn't have to rely on a press release to get a feel for what a new seat is going to offer.

Following a few weeks of rumors, Virgin Atlantic has now confirmed that it plans to launch a new service between London Heathrow and Tampa later this year as it continues to grow its post-pandemic route network.

While guidance has remained in place in some areas, the UK population has been free of domestic Covid restrictions for almost a month and despite a sign that hospitalisations due to Covid may be on the rise, the UK government has announced that all remaining travel restrictions are being lifted and the UK's two long-haul carriers have announced an end to mask-wearing onboard.

The Virgin Atlantic Clubhouse at London Heathrow Terminal 3 is often talked about in the same breath as some of the best airport lounges around the world so as I was passing through T3 on a recent trip, I made some time to get some pictures of the Clubhouse and to reacquaint myself with a lounge that I seem to like more each time I visit.

If you're booked to fly with Virgin Atlantic to Los Angeles this December it may be time to check your seat reservations, and if you're considering booking Virgin Atlantic Business Class for travel to/from Los Angeles in December, it may be time to consider other options because the airline will not be flying its A350 to LAX for a period of 31 days.

Following a 20 month hiatus, travel between the UK and the United States will be restarting on Monday (8 November) and if what we're hearing is true, there will be a flood of people crossing the Atlantic in the coming weeks. If you're one of those people and you plan on flying with Virgin Atlantic out of Los Angeles, the information in this post may useful.