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It has been more than four decades since Virgin Atlantic operated its first revenue flight. The airline launched its first service in June 1984 with a flight from London Gatwick to Newark, New Jersey. Since then, it has grown into one of the UK’s prominent long-haul airlines. Virgin Atlantic now operates to more than 35 destinations across five continents. Indeed, North America has remained an important part of that network.
The airline has expanded its presence in the US and Canada over the years, but its network in the region has also gone through several changes. Routes have been added, withdrawn, and adjusted. Simple Flying took a look at how Virgin Atlantic’s network to North America has changed over the past 20 years.
Virgin Atlantic Has Dropped These North American Routes
Our analysis found that the airline has discontinued five North American routes over the past two decades. One of them was the service to 
Chicago O’Hare International Airport(ORD). The SkyTeam Alliance member first launched the route in 1999 with a daily nonstop service from 
London Heathrow Airport (LHR) using Boeing 747-200s. It then suspended the route in October 2001 following the sharp fall in air travel demand after the September 11 attacks.
In 2007, the airline brought the route back from Heathrow and eventually ended the service in 2016 as it looked to optimize its network and move aircraft onto routes that offered stronger returns. Another route was to Newark, Virgin Atlantic’s most historic destination, as it flew its first-ever revenue flight from London Gatwick to Newark. It later ended the route following the COVID-19 pandemic. According to scheduled data from Cirium, the airline operated around 9,140 one-way flights to Newark over the past 20 years.
Airport | Launch/change | Last operations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD) | 1999; Relaunched in 2017 | 2016 | When the airline canceled the route, it moved a Boeing 787-9 originally planned for Chicago to launch a third daily service between London Heathrow and Los Angeles |
Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) | 1984 | 2020 | First-ever destination (London Gatwick to Newark) |
Detroit Metropolitain Wayne County Airport (DTW) | 2015 (Took over from Delta as part of their wider joint venture) | 2017 | Virgin Atlantic’s de facto SkyTeam route; following a wider network reshuffle in 2017, the operation moved back to Delta aircraft. |
Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) | 2022 | 2024 | Canceled due to a shift in corporate travel demand following the COVID-19 pandemic |
Vancouver International Airport (YVR) | 2012 | 2014 | Only operated the seasonal summer route; didn’t prove to be as popular as the airline hoped |
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Vancouver Left Virgin Atlantic Without A Canadian Route
Vancouver was the only Canadian destination in Virgin Atlantic’s network when the airline operated flights to the country. The carrier launched its London Heathrow-Vancouver service in 2012 as a seasonal summer route, targeting strong demand from UK travelers heading to British Columbia. According to industry data, more than 700,000 people traveled from the UK to Canada each year at the time, with around 70% of those trips taking place during the five-month summer peak.
At the time, British Airways and Air Canada dominated the market. The two airlines were the only carriers offering nonstop flights between London Heathrow and Vancouver. Sir Richard Branson said Virgin Atlantic wanted to bring greater competition to a route with high fares and consistent demand. However, the route did not develop as the carrier had expected. The airline later said Vancouver “hadn’t proven to be as popular as we’d have hoped.”
Therefore, in 2014, Virgin Atlantic canceled the service and left the Canadian market. For more than a decade, Virgin Atlantic did not serve Canada. It returned last year withflights between London Heathrow and Toronto. The airline currently operates the route once a day using Airbus A350-1000 aircraft. However, this will change for the winter 2026/27 season. From October 25, 2026, through March 27, 2027, Virgin Atlantic is scheduled to operate three weekly flights to Toronto, on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
North America Remains A Key Part Of Virgin Atlantic’s Network
With all this being said, North America still remains an important part of Virgin Atlantic’s long-haul network. The airline currently serves 13 destinations across the region, including New York-JFK, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Orlando, Miami and Cancun. It is scheduled to operate more than 8,000 one-way flights to these destinations this year. In September, the airline has scheduled 728 one-way flights across its North American network.
New York-JFK and Orlando have the most departures among Virgin Atlantic’s North American destinations. The airline offers up to seven daily departures to JFK from London Heathrow and Manchester, with around 58,836 one-way seats available. Orlando has up to six daily departures from Edinburgh, London Heathrow and Manchester, offering around 38,733 one-way seats.
