Virgin Atlantic has announced the launch of flights from London Heathrow to Riyadh in Saudi Arabia and Accra in Ghana in summer 2025.
Tickets for both routes go on sale from September 12 2024.
The daily service to Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport aims to “participate in the growth expected from Saudi Vision 2030”.
The Virgin Atlantic announcement said air travel between the UK and Saudi Arabia is forecast to grow 24% between 2019-2035 as the destination targets rapid growth.
In 2023 annual trade between the UK and Saudi Arabia was worth £17.1 billion with an ambition to reach £30 billion of trade by 2030.
“The market is expected to have a predominantly Saudi Arabian point of sale, which will see customers visiting the UK, as well as seamlessly connecting to 12 destinations throughout North America, on Virgin Atlantic and Delta networks, including Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Seattle, Boston and Detroit,” said the announcement.
“Alongside business travellers, the route will serve the ‘visiting friends and relatives’ (VFR) market, which has seen a fivefold increase in Saudis living in the UK between 2000 and 2018.”
Flights to Riyadh will operate daily on A330neo, the newest aircraft in Virgin Atlantic’s fleet, with the first flight departing Heathrow on March 30 2025.
Riyadh is also home to the airline’s SkyTeam partner, Saudia, and the partnership will offer onward connections to Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi, with further destinations within Saudi Arabia and to Bangladesh and China to follow as the airline continues to grow its strategic partnership with Saudia.
Flying Club members will earn and redeem Virgin Points across Saudia’s flying programme, alongside SkyTeam partners.
All Saudia operated flights from Heathrow and Manchester to Riyadh and Jeddah are already marketed by Virgin Atlantic, and on sale across all sales channels.
Virgin Atlantic has also signed a Strategic Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding with with the intention of introducing an “array of benefits” for customers traveling between London, Saudi Arabia and destinations beyond.
The agreement is the first stage in the strategic partnership that will enable both airlines to strengthen connectivity, expand their networks and enhance customer experience.
“The agreement lays the foundations for a long-term relationship, subject to regulatory approvals, that includes interline and codeshare connectivity, as well as a potential deeper partnership which could encompass loyalty benefits,” said the announcement.
“The partnership will open new destinations in Saudi Arabia and beyond for Virgin Atlantic customers, which includes its new service between London Heathrow and King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh.”
Meanwhile, Virgin Atlantic will return to Ghana for the first time since 2013, with daily flights to Kotoka International Airport in the nation’s capital, Accra, from May 2025.
The UK is home to the third largest Ghanaian diaspora in the world and the new service will respond to demand to visit friends and relatives.
Around 10% of customers are also expected to connect through London onto Virgin Atlantic’s New York JFK service.
Launching on May 1 2025, the daily service will operate on a Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft with the airline’s Upper Class, Premium and Economy Delight, Classic and Light cabins, as well as an onboard bar.
Virgin Atlantic recently announced expansion in North America, with its return to Canada.
In October it will suspend its Heathrow-Shanghai route blaming increased flight times and higher costs due to the inability to fly across Russia due to the Ukraine conflict.
