Virgin chief executive Shai Weiss said the alliance, of which its 49% stakeholder Delta is a key partner, was “an obvious extension for us”, given the joint venture Virgin has had with its US, French and Dutch partners since 2012.
SkyTeam chief executive Kristin Coleville said: “Virgin is the first new airline to join SkyTeam in over eight years. I’m thrilled that after all this time, the airline that does join is such an innovative and iconic global brand. For Virgin customers, this is opening up the world.”
She promised “the most seamless customer journey of any global alliance” using digital technology to merge booking systems “within six months”.
