Virgin Atlantic is to launch its first-ever flights to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in March 2025 in an attempt to take advantage of the Kingdom’s burgeoning growth, the airline confirmed on Monday.
The new London Heathrow to Riyadh non-stop service will operate daily aboard an Airbus A330neo with 32 suites in Upper Class, 46 Premium seats and 184 Economy seats.
Analysts primarily see the decision to launch flights to Riyadh as a response to the continuing security risk in Israel and the fact that Virgin Atlantic has been forced to suspend its daily service to Tel Aviv since October 2023.
Virgin Atlantic hopes to tap into the local Saudi market, especially during the summer months when many locals leave the intense heat of Riyadh to enjoy the more temperate conditions in London.
In addition, Virgin Atlantic is hopeful that the service can remain profitable during the winter months as the Kingdom plows billions of dollars into transforming its economy to attract luxury tourism.
Thirty tonnes of daily cargo capacity will also transport fresh fruits, vegetables, and pharmaceuticals to Riyadh.
At this point, it starts to look like Virgin Atlantic is almost throwing darts at a map to see where it can add routes, as the airline also announced on Monday that it would give another crack at operating flights to the Ghanian capital, Accra with a new daily service aboard its Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, set to launch in May 2025.
Virgin Atlantic will go head to head with British Airways on its daily service to Accra but given the fact that the UK is home to the third largest Ghanaian diaspora in the world, the airline clearly thinks it can fill seats with ease.
With a flight time of just over six hours, the service will also give Virgin Atlantic greater utilization of its aircraft – unlike its London to Shanghai service, which will be indefinitely suspended at the end of October due to the cost and time involved in avoiding Russian airspace.
The same goes for Virgin Atlantic’s previously announced new service to Toronto, which will launch on March 30, 2025, and which has been timed to maximize the number of connections from the airline’s three destinations in India.
Matt’s take
It’s sure going to be interesting to see whether Virgin Atlantic can make Riyadh work as a destination. The airline is boasting about possible connections to the United States, as well as its partnership with fellow Skyteam carrier Saudia but this could be a remarkably tricky market to crack.
British Airways has a long-established presence in Saudi Arabia and is popular with locals who want to fly with a more Western airline. The carrier also boasts an extensive short-haul network which helps with connecting passengers who have traveled across Europe.
As a newcomer, Virgin Atlantic will not only have to compete against British Airways but will also face intense competition from Riyadh Air, which plans to launch in 2025. It’s all very well saying that the Saudi market is expected to grow in the coming years but it certainly feels like there’s going to be a glut of capacity on this route next year.
Perhaps Riyadh Air will be more of a partner to Virgin given Riyadh Air’s close partnership with Virgin’s parent airline Delta.