Virgin Atlantic signs codeshare deal with MEA

Agreement enables passengers to fly to the US from Lebanon and vice versa via London

Virgin Atlantic has announced a new codeshare agreement with Middle East Airlines (MEA).

Offering connections between the US and Beirut via London Heathrow, the codeshare will allow customers booking through Virgin to travel from Boston, New York JFK and Los Angeles to the Lebanese capital and vice versa via London Heathrow Terminal 3. 

Virgin Atlantic chief commercial officer Juha Jarvinen commented: “We’re delighted to launch this codeshare partnership with MEA Middle East Airlines-Air Liban. As we recover from the pandemic, partnerships are more important than ever,  and we look forward to building on the incredibly successful interline relationship we have had in place for a number of years.   

“With a large diaspora population of Lebanese living in the US, this new partnership aims to respond to the large, fast-growing demand to visit friends and relatives as people start to travel to visit their loved ones post-Covid-19. We also expect to capture demand for business and leisure travel to the vibrant city of Beirut as travel restrictions begin to relax and global economies gradually recover from the pandemic.” 

FOR MORE NEWS YOU CAN USE, SIGN UP FOR CONNECTING TRAVEL’S WEEKLY BULLETIN

Middle East Airlines head of commercial strategy and alliances Walid Abillama said: “Our interline relationship with Virgin Atlantic was the first to target the US travel market to Beirut, and so it is natural for us to partner with Virgin Atlantic and build the first US codeshare agreement targeting Beirut.

“We are hopeful that this partnership will reintegrate Beirut within the global economy as a post-Covid-19 travel destination and will maintain its promise of resilience.” 

Middle East Airlines is a SkyTeam member and operates flights to 32 international destinations in Europe, the Middle East and West Africa.

For more information, visit www.virginatlantic.com or mea.com.lb