Virgin Atlantic and Delta Air Lines are boosting flights between the UK and US from next summer, in a move which sees Delta join Virgin Atlantic at Gatwick Airport.
Gatwick will become Delta’s seventh trans-Atlantic destination served nonstop from Boston when flights begin on May, 22 2020. One day before, Virgin Atlantic will launch a daily flight to New York-JFK from Gatwick. Together, the airlines will offer up to four daily flights to three US cities next summer.
Beginning March 29, 2020, Delta and Virgin Atlantic will increase capacity between New York-JFK and London Heathrow. Delta will increase its services to three daily frequencies, with Virgin Atlantic operating five, providing more flight options connecting one of the world’s premier trade lanes.
Virgin Atlantic’s Heathrow-JFK flights will also be the first route served by the airline’s new Airbus A350 from September 2019, which will offer a further cargo capacity boost.
Virgin Atlantic is also set to increase flights to important west coast hubs, as it ups frequencies from Heathrow to Seattle from seven to 11 per week. Los Angeles will also see services rise from 14 to 17 flights per week, with up to three services per day operating in the busy summer months and will be the second route to be operated by the A350 next year.
Delta will also introduce a new service from Manchester to Boston effective May 21, 2020, taking over Virgin Atlantic’s current operation. Flights will increase from the current three per week to a daily service.
Manchester will become the eighth trans-Atlantic destination served nonstop by Delta from Boston, while flights to Atlanta, New York-JFK, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and Orlando will continue to be operated by Virgin Atlantic. Together, the airlines will offer a schedule of up to six daily flights to Manchester from six US cities next summer.