T5 troubles strengthen Virgin Atlantic sales

Virgin Atlantic reported that its sales were still on the rise following the troubled Terminal 5 opening, and that passenger numbers rose 6% last month.

The airline is announcing its intent to hire an extra 100 cabin crew to staff its additional daily flight to on its London-to-Hong Kong service.

Despite lowered consumer economic confidence and rising fuel surcharges, Virgin Atlantic reported that it was experiencing strong sales on flights to the US and the Caribbean.

“We have definitely taken market share post-T5,” noted Paul Charles, director of communications for Virgin Atlantic. “There is still massive demand to fly long haul to countries where the pound is strong and the dollar is weak, such as the Caribbean and the US.”

British Airways, T5’s only tenant, reported a drop in traffic of 0.7% last month.

Virgin Atlantic said that premium sales increased by 10% in May, for the second consecutive month.

BA and Ryanair have acknowledged their struggle to make a profit this year due to the combination of high fuel costs and decreased demand. Both are hoping to capitalise on failures of weaker rivals, however, as the global airline industry is expected to lose loss of $6bn this year if oil prices remain at these record levels.

The future of another of BA’s rivals, Silverjet, is currently undecided as its management holds rescue talks with interested parties.