Virgin Atlantic Marks 25 Years in India

Virgin Atlantic celebrates 25 years of flying to India, marking the milestone with impressive growth and renewed investment in the Indian market. Since launching its first service between London Heathrow and Delhi in July 2000, India has grown to become Virgin Atlantic’s third-largest global market.

With five daily flights from Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru, the airline now offers one million seats annually, representing a 350 per cent increase since 2019. Cargo operations have surged in parallel, with a 356 per cent increase in freight capacity, supporting key sectors such as fashion, pharmaceuticals and technology.

Shivani Singh Deo, India Country Manager at Virgin Atlantic said: “We couldn’t be prouder of all Virgin Atlantic has achieved in our 25 years of flying to India, growing our offering from zero to one million seats and expanding from Delhi to Mumbai and Bengaluru. Our premium service offers a brilliantly different experience to the market, offering seamless connections to Canada, USA and beyond via London Heathrow, as well as throughout India by leveraging the power of our commercial cooperation with IndiGo. We look forward to welcoming many more customers over the next 25 years, surprising and delighting them with our onboard service with extra Indian touches, delivered by our amazing crew.” 

The celebration was led by CEO Shai Weiss and CCO Juha Jarvinen, joined by local crew at India Gate. Virgin Atlantic’s IndiGo codeshare partnership, launched in 2023, now offers seamless connectivity to 34 Indian cities, and has already served over 200,000 passengers.

In a nod to its Indian customers, Virgin Atlantic has doubled its Indian crew members per flight, introduced Hindi-speaking staff, and upgraded its menu with regional favourites like masala dosa, saag masala, and medu wada. Indian movies and music also enrich the onboard entertainment experience.