Virgin Atlantic Airbus A340
Following the demise of Laker Airways, its former chief pilot, Alan Hellary partnered with a lawyer, Randolph Fields, with the idea of establishing an airline that would fly from London to the Falklands. The Falklands War had just ended when the two men began planning the new airline, and it was thought that there would be renewed interest in the Falklands Islands, enough to make an airline profitable.
Unfortunately, the runway at Port Stanley was too short for wide-body airliners, so Fields and Hellary turned back to Laker Airways for inspiration: the new airline--British Atlantic Airways--would offer low-cost flights between London-Gatwick and New York City-Newark. Flights between these two airports were cheaper and easier to obtain landing rights than London-Heathrow and New York City-Kennedy. British Atlantic needed financial backing, and the two men approached Richard Branson, the head of the Virgin Records corporate empire, for help. Branson was an admirer of Freddie Laker, and agreed to back the airline--so long as it changed its name to Virgin Atlantic Airways. Fields and Hellary agreed (though Hellary would eventually be bought out by Branson). and Virgin Atlantic launched in June 1984 with a single leased Boeing 747.
Branson wanted Virgin Atlantic to turn a profit within a year, and was not disappointed. The new airline filled a niche largely left open since Laker Airways went under, and Branson's aggressive marketing and charisma led travelers to give Virgin Atlantic a try. By 1986 the airline was operating two 747s. It wasn't enough for Branson, who wanted to expand Virgin Atlantic to cover Asia, a region served by only one British airline--the flag carrier, British Airways. The British government was willing to go along, and British Airways found itself in competition with a much younger and smaller airline, but one backed by a billionaire's money.
This set off a war between the two airlines, with British Airways attempting to strangle Virgin Atlantic in what Branson called the "dirty tricks" campaign. in 1993, British Airways was found guilty of such a campaign, which embarrassed the company and added to Virgin Atlantic's luster. Branson twisted the knife a little: when British Airways removed the Union Jack from its tails for the ill-advised "World Images" motif, Union Jacks went up on Virgin Atlantic's airliners, which now proudly proclaimed that Virgin Atlantic was the "true" flag carrier. Nose art based on World War II-era Varga Girls was also added to the fleet, with appropriate nicknames, which only helped Virgin Atlantic's cheeky image.
By 2000, Virgin Atlantic's fleet now consisted of all-new aircraft, a mix of Airbus (mostly Airbus A340s) and Boeing (all 747s) on its long haul routes; the airline opened subsidiaries, including Virgin America, Virgin Blue (Australia), Virgin Sun (holiday travel), and Virgin Little Red (London-Dublin). In 1999, 49% of the airline was sold to Singapore Airlines, but Virgin Atlantic continued to turn an impressive profit.
That began to change in 2005. Branson had overextended his airline--Little Red in particular was hemorrhaging money--and rising fuel costs began to hit the airline hard. It began to post losses, and by 2010, Singapore was looking to sell its shares. These were taken up by Delta in 2012, which likely saved Virgin Atlantic from bankruptcy. It returned to profitability by 2015, but the airline continues to struggle.
This Virgin Atlantic A340 shows the airline's most well-known livery; the current one differs only slightly. This deleted the first livery's cheatline for a "Eurowhite" fuselage design, with a red tail and red engine cowlings; the Union Jack is carried on the outside of the winglets (not seen from this angle), and the Virgin logo on the tail. All Virgin Atlantic aircraft carry the "Scarlet Lady" pinup nose art, which can barely be seen below the cockpit. This is an A340-300, with a shorter fuselage than the very long A340-600s; Virgin Atlantic retired its 300s in 2015.
Virgin Atlantic Airbus A340
Following the demise of Laker Airways, its former chief pilot, Alan Hellary partnered with a lawyer, Randolph Fields, with the idea of establishing an airline that would fly from London to the Falklands. The Falklands War had just ended when the two men began planning the new airline, and it was thought that there would be renewed interest in the Falklands Islands, enough to make an airline profitable.
Unfortunately, the runway at Port Stanley was too short for wide-body airliners, so Fields and Hellary turned back to Laker Airways for inspiration: the new airline--British Atlantic Airways--would offer low-cost flights between London-Gatwick and New York City-Newark. Flights between these two airports were cheaper and easier to obtain landing rights than London-Heathrow and New York City-Kennedy. British Atlantic needed financial backing, and the two men approached Richard Branson, the head of the Virgin Records corporate empire, for help. Branson was an admirer of Freddie Laker, and agreed to back the airline--so long as it changed its name to Virgin Atlantic Airways. Fields and Hellary agreed (though Hellary would eventually be bought out by Branson). and Virgin Atlantic launched in June 1984 with a single leased Boeing 747.
Branson wanted Virgin Atlantic to turn a profit within a year, and was not disappointed. The new airline filled a niche largely left open since Laker Airways went under, and Branson's aggressive marketing and charisma led travelers to give Virgin Atlantic a try. By 1986 the airline was operating two 747s. It wasn't enough for Branson, who wanted to expand Virgin Atlantic to cover Asia, a region served by only one British airline--the flag carrier, British Airways. The British government was willing to go along, and British Airways found itself in competition with a much younger and smaller airline, but one backed by a billionaire's money.
This set off a war between the two airlines, with British Airways attempting to strangle Virgin Atlantic in what Branson called the "dirty tricks" campaign. in 1993, British Airways was found guilty of such a campaign, which embarrassed the company and added to Virgin Atlantic's luster. Branson twisted the knife a little: when British Airways removed the Union Jack from its tails for the ill-advised "World Images" motif, Union Jacks went up on Virgin Atlantic's airliners, which now proudly proclaimed that Virgin Atlantic was the "true" flag carrier. Nose art based on World War II-era Varga Girls was also added to the fleet, with appropriate nicknames, which only helped Virgin Atlantic's cheeky image.
By 2000, Virgin Atlantic's fleet now consisted of all-new aircraft, a mix of Airbus (mostly Airbus A340s) and Boeing (all 747s) on its long haul routes; the airline opened subsidiaries, including Virgin America, Virgin Blue (Australia), Virgin Sun (holiday travel), and Virgin Little Red (London-Dublin). In 1999, 49% of the airline was sold to Singapore Airlines, but Virgin Atlantic continued to turn an impressive profit.
That began to change in 2005. Branson had overextended his airline--Little Red in particular was hemorrhaging money--and rising fuel costs began to hit the airline hard. It began to post losses, and by 2010, Singapore was looking to sell its shares. These were taken up by Delta in 2012, which likely saved Virgin Atlantic from bankruptcy. It returned to profitability by 2015, but the airline continues to struggle.
This Virgin Atlantic A340 shows the airline's most well-known livery; the current one differs only slightly. This deleted the first livery's cheatline for a "Eurowhite" fuselage design, with a red tail and red engine cowlings; the Union Jack is carried on the outside of the winglets (not seen from this angle), and the Virgin logo on the tail. All Virgin Atlantic aircraft carry the "Scarlet Lady" pinup nose art, which can barely be seen below the cockpit. This is an A340-300, with a shorter fuselage than the very long A340-600s; Virgin Atlantic retired its 300s in 2015.