MONDAY MAR 18, 2024
×
Search AeroXplorer
Virgin Atlantic to Join SkyTeam

Virgin Atlantic to Join SkyTeam

BY JACK TURNER 09/29/2022 AGO 0 COMMENTS

After a long period of speculation, Virgin Atlantic announced that it will join the SkyTeam alliance at the beginning of 2023. Virgin Atlantic will be the first airline to officially join the alliance in eight years (outside of Alitalia transitioning to ITA), but them joining is not unexpected. For years, Virgin Atlantic has had a successful partnership with SkyTeam's largest member, Delta Air Lines (who owns a 49% stake in Virgin Atlantic), in which flights were codeshared and passengers could earn and redeem miles on each other's flights. Virgin Atlantic also had similar agreements with Air France and KLM, equally large carriers in SkyTeam. 

 

Virgin Atlantic is the first new carrier in SkyTeam in eight years | Photo: Thomas Tse

 

While frequent flyers in Virgin Atlantic's Flying Club could already spend and earn miles on other carriers like Delta, Air France, and KLM, joining SkyTeam now enables those members to earn and spend on all other SkyTeam partners. This includes Korean Air, and Aeromexico, among others. The other significant benefit of being in the alliance is that elites in any member's frequent flyer program can gain SkyTeam status that applies across the entire network, granting them lounge access, priority access, and additional checked baggage, among a host of other benefits. While SkyTeam Elite Plus status may not be as valuable as the perks of Star Alliance Gold or OneWorld Emerald, there are certainly still a large number of perks.

 

For Virgin Atlantic fliers specifically, Flying Club Silver members will become SkyTeam Elite, while Flying Club Gold members will become Elite Plus once the carrier becomes a part of the alliance next year. SkyTeam Elite status allows members to access business class lounges across the entire SkyTeam network, which could overcrowd Virgin Atlantic's clubhouse lounges, but expansions are also in the works to alleviate those potential problems. 

 

Virgin Atlantic joining SkyTeam could open up collaboration opportunities with airlines like Korean Air Photo: Arthur Chow

 

Joining SkyTeam is undoubtedly a large benefit for Virgin Atlantic passengers, but it also allows Virgin Atlantic to boost its own network and cooperation with other SkyTeam members. Now that the airline has agreements with airlines like Korean Air or Vietnam Airlines through the alliance, routes to Seoul (ICN) or Ho Chi Minh City (SGN) from London (LHR) could be more feasible as more connections are available. SkyTeam is, at times, not as seamless at integrating member airlines' networks and frequent flyer programs, as has been the case with ITA taking over Alitalia, but it remains to be seen what will happen with Virgin Atlantic. Given that Virgin Atlantic already has well-established relationships with major SkyTeam airlines, the transition should be fairly smooth.

Jack Turner
Jack is a member of the AeroXplorer writing team and particularly enjoys sharing news around domestic flying and news surrounding his favorite airline, Delta. Jack splits his time between his hometown of Burlingame, California and Ithaca, New York and enjoys all things public transport in addition to aviation.

Comments (0)

Add Your Comment

SHARE

TAGS

NEWS Virgin Atlantic Virgin SkyTeam SkyTeam Alliance Delta London LHR Korean Air Air France KLM

RECENTLY PUBLISHED

Remembering David E. Harris: The First African American Commercial Airline Pilot On March 8, the aviation industry was saddened by the loss of David E. Harris (1934-2024), the first African-American pilot to receive the title of captain at a major US commercial airline in 1964. The Columbus, Ohio-born Harris had a storied career in the United States Air Force before switching to a commercial airline in the mid-1960s, when he was fighting through barriers regarding race. STORIES READ MORE »
This Boeing 747 Was Purposely Crashed for a Movie Stunt An example of the intersection between film and aviation involves the 2020 film Tenet. The movie's directors purchased a Boeing 747 to blow up during filming. INFORMATIONAL READ MORE »
What Passengers Traveling by Air for March Madness Should Know Sports enthusiasts are excited to complete their NCAA March Madness brackets and see which college basketball teams will compete in this year's tournament. Teams will travel across the country to play each other, mostly on commercial flights. Meanwhile, flight searches and prices have risen in several cities amid high passenger demand to attend games. NEWS READ MORE »


SHOP

$2999
NEW!AeroXplorer Aviation Sweater Use code AVGEEK for 10% off! BUY NOW

FOLLOW US ONLINE