LONDON — Virgin Atlantic is on its way back to Toronto.

The airline has announced a new direct route between Toronto Pearson and London Heathrow, operating daily as of March 30, 2025 with a mix of aircraft including the A330-900neo.

Jared Mikoch-Gerke, WestJet, Director of Alliances and Airport Affairs, John Weatherill, WestJet Group, Executive Vice-President & Chief Commercial Officer, Juha Jarvinen, Virgin Atlantic, Executive Vice President & Chief Commercial Officer, Kate Leigh, Virgin Atlantic, Head of Alliances, Alexis von Hoensbroech, WestJet Group, CEO, Shai Weiss, Virgin Atlantic, CEO, and Jenny McGowan, Virgin Atlantic, Vice-President, Network & Alliances (CNW Group/WESTJET, an Alberta Partnership)

The route will also reinforce the airline’s commitment to the Indian subcontinent and its third largest market with onward connectivity for Canadians travelling to Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru, as well as Tel Aviv, Lagos, and Johannesburg via London Heathrow.

The route complements existing service between Canada and Europe with the airline’s joint venture partners Delta Air Lines, Air France and KLM.

Says Juha Jarvinen, Chief Commercial Officer at Virgin Atlantic: “We are incredibly excited to be back in Canada and to launch this new service between Toronto and London. With an impressive film, sports, food, and entertainment scene, we know Canadians will enjoy travelling with us to London, a city that also celebrates arts and culture and encourages exploration. Our expansion into The Great White North will complement our services from our U.S. heartland to the UK. We know our customers and our people will enjoy all Toronto has to offer, from seamless connectivity onwards across the beautiful region to hockey and film festivals in the city, the city is a lively destination for business and leisure travellers alike.”

VIRGIN ATLANTIC, WESTJET EXPAND CODESHARE

In launching the route, Virgin Atlantic also announced an expansion of its partnership with WestJet.

In its own statement, the WestJet Group says WestJet passengers will gain access to an extensive list of international destinations via Heathrow, through the expansion of its codeshare agreement with Virgin Atlantic.

WestJet will sell itineraries including flights operated by Virgin Atlantic from LHR to destinations within Virgin Atlantic’s international network for winter 2024/2025.

By summer 2025, WestJet will also provide domestic connectivity to Virgin Atlantic’s newly announced route between Toronto-Pearson and London Heathrow.

Yesterday in Las Vegas, alongside Sir Richard Branson, Virgin Atlantic and WestJet announced the expanded relationship, capping an agreement that was signed last week at IATA’s AGM in Dubai, where WestJet’s John Weatherill, Executive Vice-President and Chief Commercial Officer, was joined by Juha Jarvinen, Chief Commercial Officer at Virgin Atlantic, to expand the current codeshare agreement between both airlines.

WestJet and Virgin Atlantic established their codeshare partnership in 2019.

“Through the expansion of our existing partnership with Virgin Atlantic, we are unlocking amazing opportunities for our guests to access an extensive list of new destinations and to experience Virgin Atlantic’s innovative products and services beyond London,” said Weatherill. “With daily flights from our global hub in Calgary to London, Canadians have never had better international access from across Western Canada to the United Kingdom and beyond.”

Starting this winter, the expanded partnership will provide guests with single-stop access on a single itinerary from Calgary via Virgin Atlantic’s Global Hub in London Heathrow to new global destinations including New Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru in India, along with other desirable destinations including Johannesburg and Cape Town in South Africa, Lagos, Nigeria, Dubai, and the Maldives (new routes are pending regulatory approval).

As part of the expanded relationship, WestJet Rewards and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club will be working towards a reciprocal frequent flyer partnership in 2025.

WestJet’s expanded codeshare agreement with Virgin Atlantic will be the airline’s first-ever agreement enabling connectivity beyond Europe through London Heathrow, a milestone in growing WestJet’s global network to even more destinations through partnerships. This will also be the first time that WestJet passengers will have access to India, Africa, and the Middle East via a WestJet marketed codeshare as part of its greater network.

Virgin Atlantic says flights for its new Toronto Pearson – London Heathrow route go on sale June 19 with roundtrip fares starting at Cdn$1,101 per person.

From Toronto, flight VS148 departs at 10:20 p.m., arriving at 10:30 a.m. the next day. On the return leg, flight VS147 departs LHR at 5:10 p.m., arriving in Toronto at 8:30 p.m.