Does anyone know the reason for the low utilisation of the 747's over the past few weeks.

Looking at today, none are scheduled to operate with MAN and LGW getting an A333 each today.

They are an A332 down due to one being in Dresden for maintenance, but first of all i'm surprised they've got the slack in the LHR fleet to release two A333's even temporarily and also, how long has it been since even 1 VS 747 hasn't been scheduled at MCO on a particular day.

Unless there are charters that won't show on the FR24 departures list, that means 6 747's on the ground at MAN/LGW today with the last one in China for maintenance, it just seems odd.

VS75/76 has not operated, according to my records, on 14th and 21st January. Also on 15th and 16th it was an A330.

Correct but the LGW flight on those dates were always a 747, today it's an A333. I can't remember a day where not even one of the UK-MCO routes in the VS network was operated by a 747.

No 747's operating again today. 2 A333's operating out of LGW on usual 747 routes and 1 at MAN.

I just don't understand how they have the slack in the LHR fleet to release 3 aircraft and how they can afford to have 6 747's sat on the ground doing nothing?

Perhaps the current loads don't necessitate the 744, so much cheaper to operate the 333's instead. One would suspect that the 333's are costlier assets to have sitting around than the ageing 744's.

Agreed, if they are going to have six aircraft sitting on the ground, logic would suggest they’d rather it be the older frames than the newer ones, especially if loads are more appropriate for the smaller aircraft.

To say nothing of the 747s higher fuel burn

Cape Town returns from 25th October.

poor flight timings

Virgin seem to under their new CEO to be trying to be a BA competitor again. Mumbai. Cape Town second Jo'burg. But is it working?

Certainly not for the outbound as I have always enjoyed the early evening departure for an overnight and early morning Southern Africa sunrise, just perfect!

They just need to make the promised investment into Flybe/Virgin Connect.

CPT is to be a daily 787 and will be seasonal, with the ''unpopular'' day flight back - although I like it personally. (BA ditched their day flight back to be double daily at night CPT-LHR)
JNB is soon back down to once a day with the A350
DEL has 2 a day for Summer 2020
BOM is 787 daily
PVG is not running until the C-virus calms down
HKG - BA has just canx one of their 2 daily flights - Will VS canx their HKG? It's going that way....

The wheels are falling off the Virgin Connect/Flybe thing - Feel really sorry for the Flybe boys and girls....They need some job certainty but IMHO it looks pretty grim.

I had heard that CPT was going to be back BUT it is the 787, which I dislike. So will stick to JNB with the 350. The problem of the 78 is windows you cannot see out of at night and, as SKOJB says, the sunrise int he morning. Just this week, I retuned from CPT on BA and saw the sunrise at the top end of Africa, having seen it on the outbound to JNB 10 days earlier. I am not too bothered by daylight flights as I recall them from my earliest days on that route in the 1960s and 70s VC10. Ihave done daylights with several carriers and would happily do so with VS - but not on the 78.

https://www.businesstraveller.com/bu...-october-2020/
Manchester to Delhi flights starting later this year.

If they’d timed it two hours later both it’s arrival and departure at MAN would nicely coincide with connections from the afternoon wave of domestic BE/Virgin Connect services. As it is, it doesn’t.

The BE schedule is only on sale until 24th October so that's hardly an issue when this route doesn't begin ops until 26th October.

The schedule seems ideal for the majority of pax who will access the airport by train.

Just curious as to why Delhi would be operated as a seasonal destination?

To gauge demand, leave it a few weeks in and I’d expect (if it’s doing well) to be extended to year round.