Virgin Atlantic has been expanding its capacity to India as the Indian and the UK sides expanded the size of the bilateral agreement. In April 2024, the airline launched a flight between Bengaluru and London Heathrow and announced this new flight.

Virgin Atlantic Launches Second Daily Flight between London and Mumbai

Virgin Atlantic has launched its second daily direct service from London Heathrow (LHR) to Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (BOM), effective October 27, 2024. This move doubles the airline’s capacity on the popular route, catering to the increasing demand between these two major cities.

The addition of this service marks a significant milestone, as it becomes Virgin Atlantic’s fifth daily flight to India. In 2025, Virgin Atlantic plans to operate close to 1 million seats in India, as per a statement by the airline. India has emerged as Virgin Atlantic’s most significant growth market outside of the United States. This has been the case for years, and you should read our interview with Virgin Atlantic’s India country manager published earlier.

The first flight between London Heathrow and Mumbai was operated at the following times, using a Boeing 787-9 aircraft

VS354 LHR 1815 – 0835(+1) BOM
VS355 BOM 1030 – 1540 LHR

The new service is to be operated by Virgin Atlantic’s Airbus A350-1000 aircraft, but for the first week, it seems it is being operated by the Boeing 787-9. The Virgin Atlantic website claims otherwise, though.

VS358 LHR 1120 – 0145(+1) BOM
VS359 BOM 0400 – 0900 LHR

Shivani Singh Deo, Country Manager Virgin Atlantic, commented,

India presents a tremendous opportunity for us, thanks to its dynamic and rapidly growing economy. Mumbai is an essential market for Virgin Atlantic, and we’ve witnessed significant demand for premium travel experiences on this route. The impressive growth in our Upper Class and Premium cabins reflects the preferences of the discerning Indian traveller on one of the youngest fleets in the skies, with our signature service delivered by our dedicated team. Next year marks 25 years of our operations in India, and our second daily flight from London Heathrow to Mumbai showcases our dedication to delivering exceptional service and connectivity for our valued customers in India.

Bottomline

Virgin Atlantic is going big in India, having launched its fifth service from India. It wants to compete with Air India and British Airways for those travelling to London and the US traffic. This week, the airline launched its daily operation between Mumbai and London Heathrow, and plans to offer close to a million seats to India in 2025.

What do you think of Virgin Atlantic’s expansion in India?

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