Virgin Atlantic is Britain's sole long-haul only airline operating a fleet of B747s and A340s. A rewarding airline for the experienced pilot with routes to North America, Africa, Middle East, Asia, Australia and the Caribbean.

Virgin Atlantic currently employ around 700 pilots and regularly recruit new pilots to operate its large fleet of wide-body aircraft from its bases at Heathrow, Gatwick and Manchester.

Virgin do not recruit cadet pilots due to the long-haul nature of the business. Instead only experienced pilots are considered with accumulated hours of between 2500 and 3000. For commercial pilots at least 1500 hours must be on a BAe 146 or above. Virgin do recruit pilots directly from the military.

Salaries for pilots are targeted towards the market rate. Top end Captains can expect to earn up to £100K+ with base salaries significantly lower. Base salary for an entry F/O can be expected to be in the region of around £50K.

Captains are recruited from within and there are no direct entry commands. Time to command can vary but current sources indicate an expected command upgrade time of between 6 to 10 years.

Virgin is a good airline to consider for experienced pilots who wish to upgrade to long-haul flying. Experience at low-cost airlines such as Easyjet or Ryannair which provide a large number of flying hours on short sectors will stand you in good stead when applying for Virgin.

Virgin currently have three pilot bases at Heathrow, Manchester and Gatwick. Heathrow and Gatwick should be the preferred bases due to the limited destinations served by Virgin from Manchester.

Pilots can expect discounted travel, pension and medical schemes, life insurance, dependent's benefit, dental planes and health screening as a part of the collection of benefits on offer.