Virgin Atlantic to finally launch Seoul flights in 2026

Two years ago (March 2023 to be precise) Virgin Atlantic gave a binding agreement to the UK Competition & Markets Authority to launch flights to Seoul. This was part of a deal to allow UK Government approval of the Korean Air and Asiana merger.

At the time we wrote that “Flights are expected to launch during the Summer 2024 flying season which starts in late March 2024.”

They didn’t, although this was due to the Korean / Asiana merger not completing until December 2024.

However, the official announcement has now been made. Flights to Seoul will begin on 29th March 2026, three years after Virgin Atlantic agreed to do so.

With British Airways not having flown to Seoul for a number of years, the prospect of the only two airlines offering direct services merging caused concern in the UK.

As well as fears that the 150,000 passengers who flew between London and Seoul annually pre-covid could face higher fares for direct flights, there was also concern that cargo pricing could increase and raise costs for British businesses who rely on Korean imports.

Korean Air entered into a series of undertakings across both its passenger and cargo businesses to ease these concerns.

What will the deal involve?

Korean Air has provided Virgin Atlantic with slots at London Heathrow and Seoul Incheon to operate this service. From this point of view, it’s a low risk investment by Virgin Atlantic.

What is odd is that Virgin Atlantic and Korean Air will codeshare on the flights. Virgin Atlantic is already codesharing with Korean Air on its existing Heathrow services.

And, of course, both Virgin Atlantic and Korean Air are members of the SkyTeam airline alliance, allowing passengers to earn and spend frequent flyer miles on each others services.

You may therefore wonder what ‘competition’ this new service will provide ….

There’s more upside for Virgin Atlantic. It must operate the route for at least three years, albeit this is subject to ‘commercial viability’. After three years, Virgin Atlantic is allowed to use the Heathrow slots it received from Korean for a different route, although it cannot sell or lease them to another airline.

Given the cost of Heathrow slot pairs, Virgin Atlantic could happily sustain losses for three years if it meant inheriting the slots in perpetuity. Whilst, admittedly, it cannot sell these particular slots, it could move another flight into them and sell the OTHER slots it vacated.

Will the route be a success? The fact that Virgin Atlantic is putting a Boeing 787-9 onto it, with the old ‘coffin’ seat, means that it will face an uphill struggle to generate business class revenue.

When will services operate?

Flights will start on 29th March 2026.

Services will operate daily using a Boeing 787-9.

The outbound flight leaves London Heathrow T3 at 09.45, arriving at Seoul Incheon at 06.05 the following day.

The return flight leaves Seoul Incheon at 08.35, landing at 15.05.

Virgin Atlantic has agreed a codeshare agreement with Korean Air to connect to 14 cities. These are Busan, Osaka, Nagoya, Tokyo, Fukuoka, Okinawa, Hokkaido, Sydney, Brisbane, Auckland, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang and Hong Kong.

You cannot book today. Tickets, for cash or Virgin Points, will be available from 14th May.