Last Saturday (5) Virgin Atlantic resumed operations between London (LHR) and Cape Town (CPT), after an absence of 638 days. This route will be complemented by its non-stop services to Johannesburg (JNB).
Flight VS 478 was operated in a Boeing 787 registered with the registration number G-VFAN and christened «Pin Up Girl», which took off from Heathrow International Airport (LHR) at 18:00 local time and landed at Cape Town Airport (CPT) at 06:46 the following day, after 10 hours and 46 minutes.
According to data obtained through Cirium, Virgin Atlantic will offer 7,224 seats per week between the UK and South Africa, thus restoring its capacity to pre-pandemic levels.
Flight Itinerary
- London/Heathrow – Cape Town Flight VS 478 LHR 17:40 – CPT 07:20+1 daily flights.
- Cape Town – London/Heathrow Flight VS 479 CPT 10:20 – LHR 20:15 daily flights.
The route will be operated on Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft seating 258 passengers in three classes (31 Upper Class/35 Premium Economy/192 Economy).
«The return to this beautiful destination reflects the positive demand for long-haul travel to premium destinations. The daily direct service is expected to attract a substantial proportion of leisure travelers looking for a bit of winter sun to explore the world-renowned wine regions and soak up South Africa’s rich culture,» said Shai Weiss, CEO of Virgin Atlantic.
According to data compiled by Aviacionline through the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) 377,938 passengers were flown between London and Cape Town. Prior to the pandemic, South Africa was the British capital’s main market in Africa in terms of passengers and seats per seat kilometers (ASK).
In addition, Virgin Atlantic has an interline agreement with AirLink giving travelers more options to connect to various domestic destinations in South Africa and other international routes in Africa.
See also: Virgin Atlantic lands in Tampa, its third Florida destination
