Before anyone gets too excited about Virgin being back in the recruiting market, this is just a toe-dipping exercise which may well not actually result in any new recruits. The company is not certain how many of its stood-down pilots are able to come back in the timescale they're now looking at, and they
may need to recruit a very few new bods to fill the gaps. I understand (and fervently hope) that any recruiting will not affect the rights of the furloughed few to come back, so it could possibly be that those new people could, initially at least, be on short-term contracts. However, that is just my speculation and not any declared or implied company policy.
It is certainly true that commercially, Virgin has recovered far more strongly and quickly than anyone expected even only a few months ago. The two grounded A340-600s are back on the line, and I understand that the leased out 744 will return in the new year. The 10 A333s look like being additional to the fleet, but we only have firm information about the first two leisure-fit aircraft. We'll have to wait to find out about the rest. The B787 is now expected to begin deliveries in 2014 (I think) and the A380 is still sliding rightwards. There is no official suggestion that the A350 is being considered, but it seems logical to me that it must be in the mix if the B787 slips any further - its variants could conceivably replace all of the current and proposed fleets except the A380!
PPJN carries reasonably accurate information about pay and stuff. Time to command is somewhat of an imponderable, but 12-15 years is probably a fair estimate right now. It could come in to less than 10 for guys currently high on the FO seniority list if all of the A333s are additional to the current fleet.
This thread covers a great deal of info about Virgin Atlantic, and what it's like to work there. It's old, but most of it is still valid. I've merged the current and recent VS threads into this one to get more up to date info available in one place. Have a good look at all the varying points of view expressed by current and past VS pilots, and consider carefully how your own expectations would compare with their experiences here. If you are actively considering a move to VS, think carefully about the stresses the longhaul lifestyle brings to your family. Don't expect to find a company magically free of the irritations and injustices of your current place; this is a big(ish) company which grew quickly. There is evidence of that in many ways. Stuff is constantly being addressed, but there are inevitably tensions. Most of all, if you don't like being away from home or living in hotels, or being on your own, don't even think about coming here. That should be obvious, but seems to pass some people by!
Good luck to those who apply.