Virgin Atlantic has dropped plans to fly Heathrow to Sao Paulo from May and will instead begin operations in summer 2025, without providing a specific date.
Virgin Atlantic has also cancelled its Heathrow-Austin route, with flights ending on January 7, 2024.
Virgin’s chief commercial officer, Juha Jarvinen said the airline was still committed to flying to Brazil and said Sao Paulo was the gateway to South America.
Affected customers will be contacted by the airline to discuss their options, which may include rebooking or a full refund.
British Airways and LATAM operate flights between London Heathrow and Sao Paulo while Lisbon is a connecting airport to Sao Paolo with TAP Portugal.
Virgin Atlantic had initially planned to start flying to Sao Paulo in 2019, but the route was delayed and eventually cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
In June of the previous year, the airline announced plans to fly to both Sao Paulo and Bengaluru in 2024, setting a launch date of May 13 for the daily service.
