The carrier on Monday (2 September) confirmed it will launch restart flights between Heathrow and Toronto on 30 March 2025.

These services will be operated as part of a joint venture with SkyTeam partners Delta Air Lines, Air France and KLM – and in partnership too with Canada’s WestJet.

Virgin confirmed another two additions to its Heathrow network on Monday, with flights to Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh also due to start on 30 March. Virgin will resume flying to Ghana’s capital Accra around a month later on 1 May.

Earlier this year, Virgin Atlantic axed several routes, including the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos and Shanghai.

It will operate the Toronto route with a mix of A330-300 and A330neo aircraft, which Virgin said would provide better connectivity for people travelling onwards to Canada via the UK from India.

Bengaluru was the most recent addition to Virgin’s roster of Indian destinations, along with Mumbai and Delhi.

Juha Jarvinen, Virgin’s chief commercial officer, said: "Riyadh and Accra join Toronto as new routes for summer flying in 2025 and we see huge opportunities to connect friends, relatives and businesses with our new services.

"We look forward to launching these new routes in 2025, introducing the iconic, inclusive Virgin Atlantic brand, award-winning experience and our amazing people to new customers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Ghana and Toronto."

Virgin said it expected its new Riyadh route to serve both business and VFR demand, with Accra mainly tapping into VFR travel demand. All three new routes will operate daily.

Both its proposed Riyadh and Accra routes remain subject to government approval, Virgin also confirmed.