Virgin gets Atlantic

Shai Weiss, CEO of Virgin Atlantic, was quickest off the mark following the announcement that the US borders will reopen. “We are simply not Virgin without the Atlantic,” he said.

“We are thankful to Prime Minister Johnson and the UK Government, the Biden administration and our industry partners for their support in removing these barriers and allowing free travel between our countries to resume.”

The news was universally welcomed and will probably mean a rush for the electronically provided ESTA visas, normally turned around within 48 hours.

The US has said that it will reopen its borders to fully vaccinated travellers from 33 countries on 8 November. Under new rules announced by the White House, vaccinated people who have had a negative test in the 72 hours before travelling will be allowed to enter.

"This policy is guided by public health, stringent and consistent," a White House spokesman said.

The new rules will apply to Schengen countries – a group of 26 European nations – as well as the UK, Brazil, China, India, Iran, Ireland and South Africa.

www.virginatlantic.com

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