London Heathrow-Lahore-Islamabad: Virgin Atlantic says suspending operations

KARACHI: Virgin Atlantic has announced on Monday that it will be suspending services between London Heathrow and Lahore and Islamabad.

The airline started operations two years back during the tenure of Prime Minister Imran Khan as it rolled out operations to Islamabad and Lahore from Heathrow during the Covid pandemic when the airlines’ traditional markets in the US and other nations were restricted due to stringent measures.

A Virgin Atlantic spokesperson said: “As we continue to ramp up our flying programme in 2023, we’ve taken the opportunity to review our entire network and decided to make a few changes.”

“Following this review, it is with regret that we’ve taken the difficult decision to suspend our services between London Heathrow and Pakistan. Since commencing operations in December 2020, we have been proud to offer choice for customers travelling between London and Manchester in the UK, and Islamabad and Lahore in Pakistan. During that time, we have also provided important cargo capacity, as well as, delivering vital medical supplies.”

“This is not a decision we have taken lightly, and we’d like to apologise for any inconvenience caused. We would like to wholeheartedly thank everyone in Pakistan; our customers, teams, partners and the authorities for their support over the past two years.”

Virgin Atlantic will continue to operate services between London and Lahore until 1st May and between London and Islamabad until 9th July.

We will communicate to any customers due to fly after these dates - who will be affected by the cancellations - to provide options, which include rebooking, where applicable, or a full refund.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023