Delta and Virgin Atlantic Make Travel to South Africa Easier With New Codeshare

Updated: July 23, 2025, 12:51pm CDT

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Delta and Virgin Codeshare Adds Options for Travel to South Africa
Final Thoughts

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A new codeshare agreement between Delta Air Lines and its close airline partner Virgin Atlantic means more options when planning a trip to South Africa.

Delta’s flight number will soon appear on Virgin’s nonstop routes from London Heathrow (LHR) to Cape Town (CPT) and Johannesburg (JNB)

Here’s what this could mean for your next trip to South Africa.

Delta and Virgin Codeshare Adds Options for Travel to South Africa

Delta operates a modest African route network with nonstop flights to just 6 cities on the vast continent.

While Accra (ACC) in Ghana and Lagos (LOS) in Nigeria have flights from both Atlanta (ATL) and New York City (JFK), the South African cities of Cape Town (CPT) and Johannesburg (JNB) only have nonstop flights from Atlanta.

Meanwhile, departing from London (LHR), Virgin Atlantic also offers nonstop flights to South Africa. The British carrier offers a year-round, nonstop service to Johannesburg and a seasonal service to Cape Town that restarts in October.

The new codeshare agreement will see Delta flight numbers added to Virgin’s daily service to Johannesburg as of August 7 and Cape Town from October 13.

Virgin Atlantic premium economy meal — The meals that Virgin Atlantic serves in premium economy are on par with what you can expect from some airlines’ business class. Image Credit: Daniel Ross

This means you’ll be able to fly one of Delta’s many daily flights from 8 U.S. cities to London and connect seamlessly onto Virgin Atlantic’s flights to South Africa. Ultimately, this gives travelers more options to consider when planning travel from the U.S. to South Africa.

As far as transatlantic relations go, it doesn’t get much tighter than Delta and Virgin’s. Not only does Delta own a 49% stake in the U.K. airline, but both carriers are SkyTeam alliance members. As such, travelers of both airlines’ loyalty programs can earn and redeem miles as well as enjoy elite status perks and benefits when flying the other airline.

Hot Tip:

If you’re a Delta frequent flyer, then you might want to consider opening up a Delta co-branded credit card to earn more miles and additional perks and benefits when flying Delta, including complimentary checked bags and early boarding.

Final Thoughts

Delta must have noticed some untapped demand for travel to South Africa. However, rather than adding more nonstop routes from the U.S., the Atlanta-headquartered carrier will add its flight number to Virgin Atlantic’s flights from London to Cape Town and Johannesburg. This will mean more options when considering a trip from cities across the U.S. over to South Africa.