Summary

  • Say goodbye to Shanghai! Virgin Atlantic is suspending its only route to China due to challenges with not flying through Russian airspace.
  • As Virgin shifts focus, the cancellation of the China route frees up aircraft for potential expansions – such as the long-awaited São Paulo route.
  • China Eastern Airlines, a competitor on the LHR-PVG route, has an advantage with shorter flights as they fly through Russian airspace.

Virgin Atlantic is dropping its only China flight, citing complications with not being able to fly through Russian airspace.

Goodbye Shanghai

Virgin Atlantic is one of several major airlines from the United Kingdom (UK). Famous for its red uniforms and standout liveries, the airline was founded by Sir Richard Branson, whose fame is synonymous with the Virgin brand. Today, the carrier operates a wide variety of long-haul flights with its Boeing 787s and Airbus A350s and A330s.

Earlier today, reports surfaced that Virgin Atlantic was dropping its only route to China. The airline currently operates one daily flight between Heathrow Airport in London to Shanghai Pudong International Airport in China. With the ongoing conflict in Russia, Virgin’s flights have not used Russian airspace, which has made the operation a bit more complicated.

Virgin told Simple Flying,

“Our people and customers in Shanghai have been amazing since we first touched down 25 years ago and since then we’ve provided important connectivity between the UK and Shanghai for thousands of customers and supported global supply chains through our cargo operations. However, significant challenges and complexities on this route have contributed to the commercial decision to suspend flying to Shanghai. We’re sorry for the disappointment caused to our loyal customers and anyone booked to travel from 26 October 2024 will be offered a refund.”

By avoiding Russian airspace, Virgin’s flights have become longer, by one hour on the outbound leg from London and by two hours on the return leg. After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, several countries imposed sanctions on Russia and Russia also decided to ban certain international carriers from using its airspace. The two screenshots below, from Flightradar24, show the different routes the flights took between today and 2021.

The first photo shows the routing of the flight yesterday, which completely avoids Russian airspace, but comes close to the Kazahkstan/Russia border. Yesterday’s flight took 11:40. The second screenshot is from July 17, 2021, when the flight took 10:25.

China Eastern Airlines is one of Virgin’s competitors (and a SkyTeam Alliance partner) on the LHR-PVG route, in addition to British Airways. But unlike Virgin, China Eastern flies through Russian airspace. This gives China Eastern an advantage and its flights much shorter, with yesterday’s flight lasting just 10:13. Different from Virgin’s flight path, China Eastern flies over the Netherlands, then Denmark, Estonia, and enters Russian airspace for most of its journey.

Screenshot 2024-07-16 at 6.48.28 PM-1

Photo: Flightradar24

According to data from Cirium, an aviation analytics firm, Virgin planned to connect London and Shanghai for all of 2024. The airline scheduled 690 roundtrip flights this year, giving it a seat offering of 178,020. Now, the final flight is set to depart London on October 25, and the return leg will operate on the following day.

Freed up planes, where will Virgin go?

The cancelation of the route frees up aircraft to be used on other routes, but the airline has not yet indicated any expansions elsewhere. One possibility is that Virgin could launch its highly-anticipated São Paulo route earlier than anticipated, following several delays. Currently, Virgin is scheduled to begin operating flights to Brazil in summer 2025.

Never before has Virgin served South America. It was supposed to launch flights to São Paulo in 2020, but that was delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Then, last June, the airline announced that May 13, 2024 was the new launch date. The Boeing 787-9 will be the aircraft deployed on the route, which will operate daily on a year-round basis. Through its codeshare partner, LATAM Airlines, passengers will be able to connect to 12 domestic destinations in Brazil.

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