Extra flights on three Virgin routes to United States

Virgin Atlantic has announced that it is to start operating extra flights to the United States later this year, creating hundreds of new jobs. From 1 June to 30 October the carrier will operate three extra flights a week to Boston and Washington DC, with an extra weekly service to Newark. The airline has stated that the new services will bring around 15,000 extra tourists to the UK over the summer months. Chief executive Steve Ridgeway said: “These new services reflect the airline’s growing confidence in the North American market and increasing passenger demand for long-haul travel. With our load factors on US routes at record highs compared to the last few years, these services will also help to satisfy recent increased demand for travel to the US. “The load factors indicate that British tourists are taking advantage to not only the good fares available to the US, but also the favourable exchange rate.” The carrier said the new services will mean the creation of around 700 completely new jobs. Report by Tim Gillett, News From Abroad