British carrier Virgin Atlantic has expanded its operations in India with two new stops, Bengaluru and Mumbai, along with some other initiatives underway that make India its largest area of growth outside the United States.

Launching a series of significant initiatives targetting the Indian market, British airline Virgin Atlantic has added two new services to India with flights to Mumbai and Bengaluru. This expansion drive makes India its largest area of growth outside the United States, says the airline.

In a press statement, Virgin Atlantic says that this new daily service to Bengaluru was launched on April 1 and its second daily flight to Mumbai will take to the skies in October 2024.

The airline says that the new flight to Mumbai will be the airline’s fifth daily service to India. From 2025, Virgin Atlantic will offer over one million seats to the country, a 350 pc capacity growth since 2019, positioning India as a key strategic market for the airline, marking its largest area of growth outside the United States.

The statement says that in addition to offering direct services to Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru, Virgin Atlantic has a strategic partnership with IndiGo, India’s largest airline. Customers can book one ticket which allows them to connect from other destinations in India such as Ahmedabad, Goa and Hyderabad onto London Heathrow.

In total the partnership offers 36 additional destinations and has so far connected over 80,000 customers since the launch in September 2022.

“I am thrilled to be here in Bengaluru, celebrating not one but two new Virgin Atlantic services. There is a huge opportunity for us in India, it has a dynamic, fast-growing economy and we’re anticipating huge growth in demand for international travel from the region. We know both our customers and people love travelling here and we have a rich history in India,” says Shai Weiss, CEO, Virgin Atlantic.

“Next year marks 25 years of operations and with our new daily service to Bengaluru and second daily service to Mumbai, it will be the first time that we will offer more than one million seats from London Heathrow. These new flights reaffirm our commitment to the country, allowing our customers to travel seamlessly throughout India and beyond, flying on one of the youngest fleets in the skies, with our signature service, delivered by our amazing people,” he adds.

The airline adds that this increase is also a huge boost for its cargo operations with additional capacity to support the movement of goods from the fashion, pharmaceuticals and tech sectors. With five daily services, Virgin Atlantic Cargo will offer over 40 million kg of space to and from India, a 336 pc increase in capacity versus 2019.

“I couldn’t be prouder to welcome another great British brand to the city of Bengaluru. Virgin Atlantic will continue to be a key player in strengthening our living bridge between the UK and India. With the growing number of Indian business travellers, tourists, and students to the UK, the addition of Virgin Atlantic to the existing air travel options would be of tremendous benefit to the entire southern region of India, and we at the British Deputy High Commission Bengaluru warmly welcome Virgin Atlantic,” says Chandru Iyer, British Deputy High Commissioner to Karnataka & Kerala and Deputy Trade Commissioner, South Asia.