WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Virgin Atlantic is set to challenge British Airways' dominance at London Heathrow as the carrier announced plans to fly to 84 new destinations from the airport when its third runway is opened.
Chief Executive Shai Weiss said, 'Heathrow has been dominated by one airline group for far too long. The third runway is a once in a lifetime opportunity to change the status quo and create a second flag carrier. This would lower fares and give real choice to passengers, as well giving Britain a real opportunity to boost its trade and investment links around the world.'
'Changing the way take-off and landing slots are allocated for this unique and vital increase in capacity at the nation's hub airport will create the right conditions for competition and innovation to thrive,' Weiss added.
Virgin Atlantic currently flies to 19 destinations from Heathrow. All of these are long-haul destinations. However, the airline today announced plans to increase this number to 103.
Twelve of the 84 new destinations Virgin Atlantic plans to serve from Heathrow are in the UK or Channel Islands, including Aberdeen, Belfast City, Edinburgh, Exeter, Guernsey, Glasgow, Inverness, Liverpool, Jersey, Manchester, Newcastle and Newquay.
The carrier also plans to serve 37 European destinations, including Barcelona, Dublin and Madrid, as well as 35 global destinations, including Buenos Aires, Jakarta and Kunming.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX
© 2019 AFX News
