VIRGIN ATLANTIC TO OPEN FIRST HANGAR

As part of its unprecedented growth, Virgin Atlantic Airways has announced that work has begun on a £25 million facility at London’s Heathrow Airport to allow the airline to bring in-house most of its fleet maintenance. The development is a joint initiative between Virgin Atlantic and BAA Heathrow, with construction costs shared.

The entire facility covers approximately 13,000 square metres with the hangar itself measuring 80 metres by 95 metres. It has been designed to be able to accommodate Virgin’s current fleet plus future deliveries of A340-600 and A380 aircraft. Additionally, space will be available for third parties to use for scheduled, ad hoc or casualty work. The development should be completed by the end of 2002.

Sir Richard Branson, Chairman of Virgin Atlantic, said:

“This facility represents a major step forward for the airline. Our recent growth has been exceptional and over the past four years we have grown annually by between 10-15%. We are currently boosting our fleet by taking delivery of a number of new aircraft, including five brand new Boeing 747-400s and these will help us to service the new routes we are adding to the network – the latest being Toronto and Lagos.

“We also have 10 A340-600s on order for delivery from 2002 as well as being launch customer of the A380 – the first of our six will be delivered in 2006.

“As our fleet grows, it makes sense to reduce our reliance on third parties for maintenance services and facilities. This new facility will not only give cost savings but will also allow us more flexibility with timings and manpower”.

Roger Cato, Managing Director of BAA Heathrow, welcomed today’s news and said:

“We are always seeking to improve our facilities for passengers and airlines to maintain Heathrow’s status as the world’s leading international airport. This is an important joint development by BAA and Virgin which will enhance the ability to maintain new larger aircraft as they come into operation. Extending facilities within the physical constraints of Heathrow airport to accommodate larger aircraft is a challenge we are determined to meet.”

The contract for the building work has been awarded to Tilbury Douglas Construction. Jay Robinson, Strategic Projects Managing Director of Tilbury Douglas Construction, said:

“I am very proud of our success in wining this important contract which is result of our commitment to a co-operative way of working thereby enabling us to become involved much earlier in the process and ultimately add value for our clients. We view this opportunity as an important step to creating a long term relationship with blue chip clients such as BAA and VAA.”