Virgin Atlantic back in the fast lane

Virgin Atlantic is back in the fast lane, landing with a pre-tax profit of £14.4million (AU$28.25m) for the year ending December 31 2014.

The airline has officially confirmed the successful delivery of its two year recovery plan, and a return to the big leagues with a profit that marked an improvement of £65.4m on the previous year’s performance.

“I can’t think of a better way to complete our 30^th birthday year than with a return to profit,” Virgin Atlantic President Sir Richard Branson said.

“The team at Virgin Atlantic has done a great job in turning around the airline and has the right strategy to take the business from strength to strength.”

“Keeping our customers and our people at the heart of everything we do gives me great confidence in our future and I look forward to the next 30 years.”

The last time the airline recorded some money making was back in 2011, making this financial report even more positive.

Group revenue was £2.9 billion in 2014, with Virgin Holidays recording a profit for the year before tax and exceptional items of £5.7 million, up £3 million year on year, as well as jumpstarting revenue by 1.1%.

Passenger satisfaction scores have increased, with an 11% improvement since 2012, while 85.5% of flights taking off within 15 minutes of schedule.

“These profitable results mark the successful conclusion of our recovery period and have put firm foundations in place for the future,” chief executive Craig Keeger said.

“We had a clearly defined strategy to transform the financial performance of the business and everyone involved can be rightly proud that we delivered that in a rigorous timeframe, while investing in continuous improvements to our passengers’ experience.”

In October, the airline took delivery of the first of its state of the art, fuel-efficient Boeing 787-9s, with seven more to follow in 2015 as part of a fleet regeneration programme.

Virgin Atlantic and its customers gained significant benefit from its joint venture partnership with Delta Air Lines, launched in January 2014.

Over 4.5 million passengers flew on joint venture services in its first year of operation and the two airlines expect this number to continue to grow in 2015.

New routes will also be launched this northern summer between Manchester and Atlanta, London Heathrow and Detroit, and London Gatwick and Tobago, as well as a series of seasonal flights between Belfast and Orlando and Glasgow and Las Vegas.

There will also be increased frequency in services between Heathrow and major US destinations including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Atlanta and New York.

Image: Bloomberg

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craig keeger delta airlines sir richard branson virgin atlantic