Earlier today, Virgin Atlantic and IndiGo announced a new codeshare increasing connectivity between England and India. Passengers can book codeshare flights this week for travel from September 27, subject to government approval.

Virgin Atlantic and IndiGo codeshare

The new agreement means that customers who book travel with Virgin Atlantic will be able to fly on one of the airline's two routes to India, from London Heathrow. Virgin flies from London to Delhi and Mumbai, and passengers on those routes will be offered increased connectivity to seven cities in India (Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Goa, Delhi, and Mumbai). This number will increase later this year, and Virgin customers will be able to connect to 16 destinations through India. The remaining nine cities will be Kochi, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Pune, Coimbatore, Nagpur, Vadodara, Indore, and Visakhapatnam.

Meanwhile, IndiGo passengers will be able to connect to Virgin Atlantic's large United States network operated from London. Virgin Atlantic currently serves San Francisco, Los Angeles, Seattle, Atlanta, Las Vegas, Austin, Tampa, Orlando, Miami, New York, Boston, and Washington D.C.

Juha Jarvinen, Chief Commercial Officer at Virgin Atlantic, commented:

“We’re thrilled to launch a new codeshare partnership with IndiGo. This summer marks our largest ever flying programme from India with three daily direct services to London and our new partnership takes our commitment to even greater heights. IndiGo is India’s largest airline and its extensive network will offer Virgin Atlantic customers even more choice when travelling between the UK and India, as well as offering seamless connections for the onward travel across our extensive US route network. It’s great news for our Flying Club too, by providing more opportunities for members to earn valuable points. This new partnership aims to respond to the large, fast-growing demand for visiting friends & relatives, leisure as well as business travellers looking for more choice between UK and India.”

IndiGo's Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Ronojoy Dutta, added,

“We are pleased to announce our codeshare with Virgin Atlantic to provide enhanced connectivity to the passengers. This will not only help offer a seamless travel experience from London to as many as 16 destinations in India, but also open up international trade opportunities throughout the country via enhanced accessibility. We look forward to having Virgin Atlantic’s customers on our lean clean flying machine, as we extend our on-time, affordable, courteous and hassle-free travel experience.”

Recent Virgin Atlantic News

On August 12, Virgin Atlantic's first Airbus A330-900 performed its first test flight at the Airbus facilities in Toulouse. The aircraft bears test registration F-WWCG and is expected to enter into service in early October. The airline has already made tickets for the inaugural flight available and expects to operate its first passenger flight with the A330neo on October 12 from London to Boston.

In addition to Boston, another four cities will receive the new aircraft, Tampa, Miami, New York, and Atlanta (only two one-off flights). Virgin Atlantic was the first airline in the United Kingdom to place a firm order for the A330neo and will receive up to 16 of the aircraft.