Virgin Atlantic has announced plans to return to Tel Aviv, along with several new codeshare partnerships.
The airline launched its Heathrow-Tel Aviv service in 2019but the route has had a checkered history: flights were temporarily suspended in 2020 following the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, and again on October 11 last year due to the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
A daily service, operated by Virgin's A330 aircraft, will resume on September 5.
The airline has also announced a new codeshare agreement with Israeli airline EL AL, with Virgin placing its code on EL AL flights between Tel Aviv and Heathrow starting June 10, and EL AL doing the same on flights from Virgin when they resume later this year.
Meanwhile, Virgin has also launched a new codeshare with Saudia, the first phase of which is now live, allowing Virgin Atlantic customers traveling on flights from the US to purchase connections via Heathrow and Manchester to Jeddah and Riyadh.
Finally, Virgin says it is working with SAS – which will join SkyTeam in September – “towards new commercial partnerships with the best access to and from key Scandinavian hubs”.
The airline said, “This collaboration will deliver new destinations, improved connectivity and a smoother, elevated customer journey for all travelers in the very near future.”
Commenting on the news, Juha Jarvinen, chief commercial officer at Virgin Atlantic, said:
“As we celebrate our 40th anniversary this monthWe know that offering our customers more choice and award-winning service in the skies is what drives our success, along with working with the best partners.
“We are delighted to launch codeshares with our partners SkyTeam on SAS and Saudia today, improving our connectivity and offering greater benefits to our frequent travelers who will be able to earn rewards faster.
“Our return to Tel Aviv on September 5 will be good news for customers who have enjoyed our service since 2019, and this time it will be reinforced by our new codeshare partnership with EL AL.”
To read our recent interview with Virgin Atlantic CEO Shai Weiss, in which he discusses new services and broader topics such as sustainable aviation fuel and gender equality in the aviation industry, see:
Interview with Shai Weiss, CEO of Virgin Atlantic
virginatlantic.com
