Summary

  • Virgin Atlantic’s busiest US routes are Heathrow-Boston, Manchester-Orlando, and Heathrow-Los Angeles.
  • Competitors on these routes include JetBlue, Aer Lingus, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, United Airlines, and British Airways.
  • Virgin Atlantic operates the Airbus A330-300, A330-900neo, and A350-1000 on various routes, while competitors use Boeing and other Airbus models.

Virgin Atlantic is a British carrier known for offering some of the most spacious premium economy seats. Virgin Atlantic is based in Sussex, England, and recently turned 40. It has a fleet of widebody-only aircraft and flies to various destinations in the US. But what are the busiest US routes of Virgin Atlantic regarding seat availability? Let’s find out.

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5

Heathrow Airport (LHR) – Boston Logan Airport (BOS)

A busy route with lots of competitors.

Route Seats Seats per departure
BOS to LHR 16,312 263.1
LHR to JFK 16,312 263.1

There will be 62 operations from LHR to BOS and back in July 2024, according to data from Cirium, an aviation analytics company. The Available Seat Miles (ASMs) on either of these (LHR to BOS or BOS to LHR) will be 53,258,680. Virgin Atlantic operates an Airbus A330-300 and A330-900neo along this route. Other aircraft types that fly this route include:

  • Airbus 321neo by JetBlue
  • Airbus A330-200 operated by Delta Air Lines
  • Airbus A380-800 operated by British Airways
  • Boeing 777 operated by British Airways
  • Boeing 777-200 operated by American Airlines
Virgin Atlantic Airbus A330 Landing In Sunny Conditions

Photo: David Velupillai | Airbus

JetBlue, Boston’s hometown airline and a carrier that pays homage to sports teams such as the Celtics (NBA) and Red Sox (MLB), is also notably the only low-cost carrier that offers transatlantic narrowbody flights from Boston to Heathrow Airport.

4

Orlando International Airport (MCO) to Manchester Airport (MAN)

A strong leisure destination from Virgin’s second hub in the UK.

Route Seats Seats per departure
MCO to MAN 18,254 365.1
MAN to MCO 18,254 365.1

Apart from London, Manchester is the only city in the UK to feature in this list of the five busiest US routes by seat availability. Although there are a only total of 100 operations between Manchester Airport (MAN) and Orlando International Airport (MCO) – the lowest in this list – the route is the fourth-busiest in terms of the number of seats available.

A Virgin Atlantic Airbus A330 taking off from Manchester airport.

Photo: Craig Russell | Shutterstock

Only one airline competes with Virgin Atlantic along this route—Aer Lingus. This Irish flag carrier operates the Airbus A330-300 on the MCO-MAN route. Aer Lingus started operations between these two cities towards the end of 2021. On the inaugural flight, Aer Lingus deployed a 271-seat Airbus A330-200. Virgin Atlantic also operates this aircraft type and its Airbus A350-1000 between MCO and MAN.

3

Heathrow Airport (LHR) to Orlando International Airport (MCO)

The route where Virgin Atlantic has no competitors for non-stop flights.

Route Seats Seats per departure
MCO to LHR 21,289 343.4
LHR to MCO 21,289 343.4

The 4,337-mile journey from Heathrow to Orlando is the third-busiest route of Virgin Atlantic.to the US in terms of seat availability. The carrier operates direct flights between MCO and LHR – the only carrier to do so.

Until last year, the British flag carrier, British Airways, operated direct flights on this route. Virgin Atlantic will have 62 operations from LHR to MCO in July 2024, corresponding to 92,330,393 ASMs. The aircraft that Virgin Atlantic operates on this LHR-MCO route are:

  • Airbus A330-300
  • Airbus A330-900neo
  • Airbus A350-1000
Virgin A330neo takes off for the first time

The aircraft flew for almost four hours on this first test flight. Photo: Airbus

Other carriers provide one-stop flights between these airports. While the non-stop flight by Virgin Atlantic is around 9 hours and 40 minutes long, the flights operated by other carriers are significantly longer. Let’s take a look at a few carriers with one-stop flights on this route:

Operating Airline Stopover at Flight time
Air Canada Montréal–Trudeau International Airport (YUL) 12 hours 40 minutes
American Airlines Chicago (ORD) or Charlotte (CLT) or Philadelphia (PHL) Approximately 14 hours
JetBlue Airways New York (JFK) Approximately 15 hours 30 minutes

2

London Heathrow (LHR) – Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)

A journey to one of the busiest cargo airports in the US.

Route Seats Seats per departure
LAX to LHR 26,046 283.1
LHR to LAX 25,711 282.5

The 5,456-mile journey from Heathrow to one of the busiest cargo airports in the US – LAX – makes the cut as the second-longest US route of Virgin Atlantic in terms of seat availability. There are almost three operations per day (totaling to 91 operations in July) and 140,279,216 ASMs on the LHR-LAX route. Traveling on the upper class of Virgin Atlantic’s A350 on this route has been reviewed to be a treat.

A Virgin Atlantic Airbus A350-1000 on the apron at Los Angeles International Airport.
Photo: Angel DiBilio | Shutterstock

Delta Air Lines became the latest competitor to Virgin Atlantic along this route, as the airline announced non-stop flights from the LHR-LAX route last year. Delta operates the A330neo on this route, while Virgin operates Airbus A350-1000 and Boeing 787-9s.

Some other airlines providing a non-stop flight between the two LHR and LAX are:

  • American Airlines: on Boeing 777-300ERs and Boeing 777-200
  • United Airlines: on Boeing 787-9s
  • British Airways: Boeing 777-300 ERs and their iconic Airbus A380.

Virgin Atlantic has one more operation from LAX to LHR in July than from LHR to LAX. This means that there will be 335 more seats for passengers from LAX and 1,827,760 more ASMs.

1

LHR – JFK Airport

The flagship aircraft of the fleet fly from London to JFK.

Route Seats Seats per departure
JFK to LHR 59,883 287.9
LHR to JFK 60,218 288.1

Virgin Atlantic will have a total of 417 operations between LHR and JFK in the month of July – 209 of these will take place from LHR to JFK and the rest from JFK to LHR. With an almost identical number of seats per departure, the two routes will have an ASM of 206,716,116 and 207,872,536, respectively.

Virgin Atlantic
For example, Virgin Atlantic flies into JFK, but not LaGuardia, since JFK handles international long-haul arrivals.

Virgin Atlantic completes a journey of 3,452 miles between these airports on the Airbus A330-900neo and A350-1000. Other carriers that offer a non-stop flight between LHR and JFK include:

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  • Virgin Atlantic Airbus A350-1041 (2)

    Virgin Atlantic

    IATA/ICAO Code:
    VS/VIR

    Airline Type:
    Full Service Carrier

    Hub(s):
    London Heathrow Airport

    Year Founded:
    1984

    CEO:
    Shai Weiss

    Country:
    United Kingdom

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