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Virgin to launch Manchester to Delhi flights
Virgin Atlantic will launch flights from Manchester to Delhi in October to complement its double daily service from Heathrow.
Virgin also flies daily from Heathrow to Mumbai and in total it will offer 600,000 seats a year between the UK and India next winter.
The airline has also confirmed that it will relaunch a daily Cape Town service from Heathrow in October, complementing its existing service to Johannesburg.
It will also offer more fights from Manchester to Barbados next winter.
Chief commercial officer Juha Jarvinen said: "2020 is an extremely exciting year of continued growth for Virgin Atlantic and increasing our presence out of Manchester is a huge focus for us. Not only are we the headline sponsor of the Manchester Pride Festival but we’re delighted to announce a new service flying three times a week from Manchester to Delhi, additional capacity into Barbados from Manchester as well as a Clubhouse opening this summer.
"This year will also see Flybe transform into Virgin Connect, and we’re excited to offer customers flying from the north 47 daily flights throughout the UK, Ireland and across Europe."
The Manchester to Delhi service will start on October 26 with three flights a week on a A330-200 aircraft. Operating on a Monday, Thursday and Saturday, the VS318 will depart Manchester at 16:40 landing the next morning in Delhi at 06:05; the return service, the VS319, will depart on a Tuesday, Friday and Sunday at 08:10 landing back at 12:10.
Virgin’s three flights a week from Manchester to Barbados will start in January 2021 and they will be operated by a Boeing 747 .
Flights from Heathrow to Cape Town, operated by a 787 Dreamliner, will launch on October 25.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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