It is official – Atlantic will join SkyTeam in less than a month. Virgin Atlantic CEO Shai Weiss has officially told TPG that the London-based airline will join the 18-member alliance on March 2.
Since Virgin Atlantic formed a joint venture with Delta Airlines, French airline And KLM in 2019, there was speculation that Virgin Atlantic would join SkyTeam; however, this is not confirmed until September 2022. For reference, Delta owns 49% of Virgin Atlantic.
Other featured SkyTeam airlines include AirChina Airlines and Korean airline.
This is what Virgin Atlantic membership in SkyTeam means for elite members.
SkyTeam’s elite benefits
Virgin Atlantic Flight Club There are two tiers of elite status: Silver and Gold.
SkyTeam also offers two elite classes of status that would, in theory, apply on all SkyTeam-operated flights with elite frequent flyers. For example, this means that an elite member of Virgin Atlantic will get benefits on all SkyTeam member airlines as long as they include their Flight Club number in the booking. Likewise, an elite member of another SkyTeam airline will receive these benefits when flying Virgin Atlantic once the airline joins the alliance and fully integrates its systems.
We expect Silver members to get SkyTeam Elite, while Gold members will likely get SkyTeam Elite Plus. Here are the key benefits of SkyTeam elite status:
Elite SkyTeam
- Priority reservation waiting list.
- Priority airport waiting.
- Priority check-in.
- Extra baggage allowance.
- In-house preferred.
- priority seats.
- Mileage upgrade.
SkyTeam Elite Plus
- Benefits of SkyTeam Elite.
- Make sure to reserve your spot.
- Priority in the sky.
- Prioritize security and settlement.
- Access to lounges on international flights.
- Priority baggage handling.
Some TPG employees have reported difficulties getting their SkyTeam Elite and Elite Plus benefits on some of the less popular SkyTeam carriers. For example, ITA Airways is not yet fully integrated with SkyTeam despite being a member of the alliance. We hope that Virgin Atlantic will quickly integrate into SkyTeam so that its elite members can enjoy reciprocal benefits without delay.
It should also be noted that Virgin Atlantic elite members have already received benefits on some SkyTeam airlines, such as Delta Air Lines, due to existing partnerships.
Sign up for our daily newsletter
Related: Book this, not that: SkyTeam Award Tickets
Potential changes to non-alliance partnerships
We hope Virgin Atlantic members can redeem Flight Club points on all SkyTeam member airlines in the future. However, this may take some time: For example, when Alaska Airlines joins Oneworld two years ago, Union-wide redemption take some time to be done. Note that you can already redeem Bay Club miles on Air France, KLM and Delta due to existing partnerships.
We could also see Virgin Atlantic discontinue some of its existing non-SkyTeam partners. For example, Virgin Atlantic currently has partnerships with many Star Alliance airlines, including Aegean Airlines, ANA, Air India, Air New Zealand, SAS, Singapore Airlines, TAP Air Portugal and Singapore Airlines.
Virgin Atlantic also has a partnership with Hawaiian Airlines, going head-to-head with joint venture partner Delta on several key routes to Aloha State.
Whether these non-SkyTeam partnerships will survive is anyone’s guess. But just in case they are slated to be terminated in the future, you might want to lock in some of the best airline partner redemptions before they disappear. For example, perhaps our favorite sweet spot is ANA . business class booking with just 90,000 miles round trip from the US West Coast to Japan.
Related: Unlock incredible value with Virgin Atlantic points
bottom line
Some TLCs are overdue in the SkyTeam alliance. In 2019, China Southern Airlines quietly left SkyTeam and SkyTeam suspended Aeroflot from the alliance when Russia invaded Ukraine a year ago.
When Virgin Atlantic joins SkyTeam next month, SkyTeam elite members will receive their Elite and Elite Plus benefits on the airline. Flying Club members will likely be able to earn and redeem their points throughout the alliance, though that puts the airline’s non-alliance partnership into question.
