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In October 2026, Virgin Atlantic will begin flying from London Heathrow to Phuket. It will be the second London link to the ever-popular Thai destination, coexisting with TUI Airways' offering from Gatwick. Thai Airways had nonstop Phuket-Heathrow service amid the pandemic in 2021/2022. The announcement came days after Virgin began the first-ever service from Heathrow to Cancun. It was revealed shortly after the long-haul low-cost carrier Norse Atlantic launched two more Europe-Bangkok routes, with more starting soon. Like Virgin, it is seeking out places that provide decent winter opportunities. Virgin Atlantic To Phuket The UK operator will take off to Phuket on October 18, 2026. When it begins, it will be the first time the long-haul carrier has ever flown to Southeast Asia. Unsurprisingly, Virgin Holidays will be critical to this route. The reasonably early departure time from Phuket (09:20) is perhaps less good for holidaymakers, as a day is 'lost.' Slots contribute to this schedule, as does the length of the flight and the time zone change. Flights will operate three times a week on the 258-seat Boeing 787-9, of which it has 17 frames. The 787 is its most popular type/variant and its second-lowest-capacity equipment. It has 31 flat beds in business (1-1-1), 35 seats in premium economy (2-3-2; 38" pitch), and 192 seats in economy (3-3-3; 31", and 34" for extra legroom). Does The New Route Make Sense? Phuket seems to fit nicely into Virgin's network. It is a large existing leisure market. According to booking data, 182,000 round-trip passengers flew to/from London (almost 500 daily). Etihad carried the most people, followed by Emirates, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines, and Thai Airways. They will see the biggest traffic drop to/from Phuket following Virgin's entry. It is a fast-growing market, which is also an important consideration. Point-to-point traffic rose by a quarter from 146,000 round-trip passengers before the pandemic in 2019. After Moscow, London is Phuket's largest European market. With US demand slowing and the continued inability to fly over Russian airspace to Asia, Virgin has one spare 787 for winter 2026/2027, so it has chosen somewhere that's hot in that season. The new route will only be served in the winter. It has slots to use, and it must use or lose them. It is not always easy to find suitable markets, particularly during the winter. Just ask Norse. The Problems Are Twofold It is a long way, and the nature of the demand (mainly inbound tourists) means the average fare is relatively low, especially for the distance. In 2024, booking data shows that all passengers across all airlines and cabins paid an average of just USD$549 one-way (including a fuel surcharge). The lack of premium traffic meant it was pretty low-yielding. Despite being completely unfair comparisons, the fare was 48% lower than for London-Cape Town, 44% lower than Dubai's, 42% lower than Barbados's, and 30% lower than Bangkok's. A more comparable market is Cancun, whose average London fare was 27% lower than Phuket's. When detouring to avoid Russian airspace is considered, flights to the Thai destination cover about 31% more distance. Phuket service will be much more expensive to operate, yet will be notably lower-yielding. If Virgin still flew to Gatwick, it would probably make more sense to fly to Phuket from there. Gatwick's lower fees/charges would also help offset the lower yields. Speaking of the new route, senior network planner and industry commentator Behramjee Ghadially said the following. What is unknown is the significance of revenue from selling holidays. "This route is not expected to cover its full costs (operating costs plus fixed costs plus overheads) to make a net profit. Instead, it is expected to only cover operating and fixed cost margins."
