Virgin Atlantic to fly Dreamliner to India

Virgin Atlantic is planning to deploy its brand new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft to India next year, a company official has revealed.

Joe Thompson, the UK carrier’s director of network & alliances, was reported telling reporters in the US last week that Virgin will use the new wide-body jet to operate its London-Delhi route next year.

“We currently fly one of our Airbus A330s to Delhi. That will be replaced by the new 787-9s,” Thompson was quoted saying by the Economic Times.

This is likely to mark the first time the B787-9 aircraft has flown to India. Air India operates a fleet of smaller B787-8s, but the extended B787-9 only entered service this summer and is currently operated by just four airlines – Virgin Atlantic, ANA, United Airlines and Air New Zealand.

Virgin’s B787-9s come equipped with 264 seats in three cabins – 31 in business class, 35 in premium economy and 198 in economy. Its first flight took off last week, operating from London to Atlanta, while other future destinations are expected to include Boston, New York and Washington DC.

Earlier this year, Virgin announced it will suspend its flight to Mumbai in 2015.

sourced:traveldailymedia.com