The airline’s chief executive Shai Weiss said the carrier would concentrate its London market efforts on Heathrow this year after moving its operation there during the pandemic.
“We would like to think there is an opportunity for Gatwick, but it is not this year,” Weiss said during a media briefing, adding the carrier had retained its slots at the airport.
“Heathrow is where our business hub is and this is where people want to fly and where you connect.”
However, he blasted Heathrow’s 56% fees increase as “way too high and damaging for consumers”. “It’s a £200 increase for a family travelling to Orlando,” he said.
Weiss said bookings, both leisure and corporate, were strong despite the situation in Ukraine. “There was a bit of a slowdown for a week or so, but after that it has come back very strongly. Our cash position is extremely strong.”
He added flight diversions to Delhi and Pakistan because of the Ukraine situation were taking “15-90 minutes” extra.
He said Virgin had 100,000 seats still left to redeem by consumers from the pandemic and had reinstated its US routes.
“We are back to all US destinations as of last week and we launch our first new route in seven years [to Austin] in May.” He said the carrier was flying “95% of the sectors and 85% of capacity”.
Weiss said most of Virgin’s pilots who had been put on hold during the pandemic were likely to be reinstated and that 450 cabin crew vacancies had attracted 4,500 applicants.
