Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd flew its first scheduled air service between London Gatwick, and Newark, New Jersey on June 22 1984. The company quickly became profitable and within the next five years commenced services to New York, Tokyo, Los Angeles, Boston, and Orlando. Services from Heathrow commenced in 1982 following a rule-change in the airport’s flight schedules allocation, and most services depart from Gatwick or Heathrow, with Manchester a third terminal.

The average age of the Virgin fleet of 36 aircraft is 6.2 years. Virgin was the pioneer in seat-back personal T.V. The Upper Class lounge boasts the largest fully flat beds compared to other airlines, plus a range of massage and grooming treatments. Unlike most other airlines, Virgin gives free personal amenity kits to passengers in all three classes.

Plans for 2007 include routes to more countries: St. Lucia, Bahamas, Mauritius, and Nigeria. Glasgow will also join the list of British airports served by Virgin when the Glasgow - Orlando seasonal flights commence in June.

Every plane has a pinup girl painted near the aircraft nose, together with the plane’s unique name. In September 2006, Richard Branson announced plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by cutting down on aircraft weight and fuel consumption.