Virgin Atlantic is bringing back a flight not run for 11 years

If 2023 became the year of airlines expanding their European network with flashy new flights to smaller cities equivalent to Porto and Venice, we're now seeing an explosion of interest within the African continent.

United Airlines (UAL) launched a kind of most modern flights to Ghana and South Africa back in May while Delta Air Lines (DAL) is bringing back new routes to Lagos, Nigeria from New York and Atlanta in December 2024. This came after budget airline Norse Atlantic Airways (NRSAF) dropped an unexpected new 5,188-mile route between London and Cape Town, South Africa.

Related: A low-cost airline just launched a rare new flight to Africa

Launched in 1982 as a competitor to British Airways, West Sussex-based Virgin Atlantic had a flight between London Heathrow Airport (LHR) and Kotoka International Airport (ACC) in Ghana's Accra that it discontinued in 2013 and is now bringing back 11 years later.

Virgin promises to 'provide a lot needed competition on the airline'

The logo new flight will launch on May 1, 2025 and run on a every day basis on a Boeing 787 Dreamliner (BA) plane. According to Virgin, the route is intended to serve both tourists passing through London on their technique to Africa and the Ghanian community living within the United Kingdom.

More Commute:

• A new go backwards and forwards term is taking up the cyber web (and reaching airlines and hotels)
• The ten best airline stocks to buy for now
• Airlines see a brand new kind of traveler on the front of the plane

"The airline will provide a lot needed competition on the route, which currently lacks a call of routes between both countries," Virgin writes of the brand new flight. "The UK is home to the 0.33 largest Ghanaian diaspora within the sphere and the brand new service will reply to demand to debate with friends and relatives. Around 10% of customers are also expected to attach through London onto Virgin Atlantic’s New York JFK service."

The flight should be reachable to book for future go backwards and forwards as of Sept. 2. The airline is yet to announce pricing, but a one-way flight between London and Cape Town in October currently lists for £1,029 (roughly $1,354 USD) in economy on Virgin's web site.

Related: Get an appropriate cruise tips, deals, and news on the ships from our expert cruiser

Virgin also eying Saudi Arabia interest with 2d new route

Along with the return of the London-Accra route, Virgin is additionally launching a brand new flight to King Khalid International Airport (RUH) in Saudi Arabia's Riyadh. Classifying it as desirous to participate within the "growth expected from Saudi Vision 2030," Virgin is launching the flight on March 30, 2025 on an Airbus A330-900neo (EADSF) plane with 262 seats including a kind of within the airline's Upper and Top class classes.

"Alongside business travelers, the route will serve the 'visiting friends and relatives' (VFR) market, which has seen a fivefold amplify in Saudis living within the UK between 2000 and 2018," the airline writes of the brand new route.

It also said that it may possibly perhaps offer 30 metric a lot of cargo capacity for firms exporting goods equivalent to fresh produce and pharmaceuticals between Saudi Arabia and the U.K. and the U.S. (It is a common move for airlines attempting to hunt down to get new flights approved while also balancing the associated fee of running them.)

The logo new route is additionally meant to serve as a connecting point for those traveling from the UK to Pakistani cities like Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi with further connections to Bangladesh and China planned for the future.

Related: Veteran fund manager sees world of pain coming for stocks