UK-based airline Virgin Atlantic has announced it will stop flying the London Heathrow – Shanghai route after October, due to “significant challenges and complexities”.
The carrier had just returned to the Chinese city in March 2023, following the prolonged closure of China’s borders due to the pandemic. However, before the connection even resumed, it was faced with a new challenge – the closure of Russian airspace to European airlines in retribution to sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine.
Having to go around Russia adds about one hour to the flight from Heathrow to Shanghai and about two hours in the opposite direction. This not only translates to higher fuel needs, but also more crew members and more aircraft needed to maintain the adapted schedule.
The rising costs are however just one part of the problem. Chinese airlines, like Air China and China Eastern, are not subject to the Russian airspace ban. The lack of additional costs incurred from the longer services puts Chinese carriers at an advantage that Virgin said cannot compete with anymore, prompting the decision to terminate the service, with the last flights scheduled for 25 October to Shanghai and the following day back to London.
“After careful consideration we’ve taken the difficult decision to suspend our London Heathrow to Shanghai services, after proudly serving this Asian hub city since 1999. Our people and customers in Shanghai have been amazing since we first touched down 25 years ago and since then we’ve provided important connectivity between the UK and Shanghai for thousands of customers and supported global supply chains through our cargo operations”, an airline spokesperson said. “However, significant challenges and complexities on this route have contributed to the commercial decision to suspend flying to Shanghai.”
Although Virgin terminates its flights, the codeshare agreement it has with China Eastern remains in place for the latter’s passengers who will still be able to connect to Africa and the Caribbean via Heathrow on Virgin flights.
After October, China Eastern will continue to offer daily flights on the Heathrow – Shanghai route, so will British Airways, which has not yet succumbed to the pressures that lead to the scrapping of Virgin’s service. China Eastern will also maintain its daily flights on the London Gatwick – Shanghai route, for which Air China operates two services per day.
