Virgin Atlantic transfers Chicago, Newark and Detroit slots to Delta

Virgin Atlantic handed its slots at Chicago O'Hare, Newark Liberty and Detroit Metropolitan to Delta Air Lines instead of operating the routes itself.

The move follows the 2013 transatlantic joint venture that pools costs and revenue on UK‑North America nonstop flights, with net profits shared by agreed ratios, and reflects slot constraints at London Heathrow and fluctuating jet fuel prices that made three to four daily US flights economically inefficient for Virgin, whose long‑haul aircraft are 258‑seat widebodies.