It seems like almost a no-brainer, since the airline is 49 percent owned by Delta Air Lines. But on March 2 Virgin Atlantic Airways officially joined SkyTeam airline alliance, enhancing the group’s offerings at both London Heathrow and Manchester Airport. The only question we have is why did it take so long? Delta has had a 49 percent stake in Virgin Atlantic since 2012. Virgin Atlantic is already a founding partner of a joint venture with SkyTeam members Delta and Air France-KLM.

As part of Virgin’s membership in Skyteam, its customers can now benefit from more opportunities to earn and redeem points, with access to an extensive global route network. Virgin Atlantic Flying Club Gold and Silver members will receive a raft of benefits, including SkyPriority airport services for Gold members.

Virgin Atlantic formally joined SkyTeam at a signing ceremony in London on March 2.  The move means Virgin Atlantic becomes SkyTeam’s first and only U.K. member airline, enhancing the alliance’s trans-Atlantic network and services to and from Heathrow and Manchester airports.

Virgin Atlantic customers will now benefit from a seamless customer experience, across 1,000 global destinations in over 170 countries.  Customers can book every SkyTeam member flight on a single ticket, checking in with baggage just once through to their final destination.

Virgin Flying Club members have more opportunities to earn Virgin Points and Tier Points across all member airlines, accelerating both their rewards and tier status. In addition, Flying Club members will be able to redeem points on SkyTeam member airlines. Alongside joint venture partners Delta and Air France-KLM, these include Aerolíneas Argentinas, Aeromexico, Air Europa, China Airlines, China Eastern, Czech Airlines, Garuda Indonesia, ITA Airways, Kenya Airways, Korean Air, MEA, Saudia, TAROM, Vietnam Airlines and XiamenAir.

Link: https://www.insidertravelreport.com/?s=virgin-atlantic-joins-delta-air-france-klm-in-skyteam-alliance&preview=1