Virgin Atlantic & WestJet Launch Reciprocal Earning: A New Path to North America & Beyond

Virgin Atlantic's partnership with WestJet has just taken a significant step forward, and for UK-based Flying Club members, this could open up some genuinely useful earning and redemption opportunities.

The two airlines have now launched their much-anticipated reciprocal loyalty programme benefits, meaning you can choose to earn either Virgin Points or WestJet Rewards when flying on flights operated by WestJet. This comes nearly a year after the airlines first announced their expanded codeshare agreement back in June 2024.

Previously, the partnership was limited to codeshare bookings (where you could book WestJet flights through Virgin Atlantic). Now, Flying Club members can earn Virgin Points across WestJet's entire operated network – not just on Virgin Atlantic marketed flights.

This is timed perfectly with Virgin Atlantic's return to Canada. The airline launched daily A350-1000 service between London Heathrow and Toronto on 30th March 2025, marking their first Canadian route in over a decade. The 397-seat flagship aircraft operates the route, providing ample award availability for points redemptions.

WestJet operates an extensive network across Canada and beyond, including flights to:

For UK travellers, this partnership creates a powerful connection hub in Toronto. You can now fly Virgin Atlantic to Toronto using Avios or Virgin Points, then connect onwards across Canada (or to the Caribbean and US) whilst continuing to earn Virgin Points on the WestJet segments.

Given that I hold Virgin Atlantic status (matched from my British Airways Gold), I'm particularly interested in the status benefits. As a SkyTeam Elite Plus member through Virgin, I should receive priority benefits when flying WestJet, though the exact perks on WestJet are still being clarified.

What makes this partnership especially clever is the timing with Virgin Atlantic's broader North American expansion. The Toronto route provides optimal connectivity to Virgin's growing Indian subcontinent network – their third-largest market. Canadians can now easily connect through London Heathrow to destinations like Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru, as well as Dubai, the Maldives, Cape Town, and Johannesburg.

For us in the UK, it works brilliantly in reverse. If you're planning a multi-city Canadian trip or want to explore beyond Toronto, you can now do so whilst earning Virgin Points across both legs.

According to Virgin Atlantic's partner page, you can earn Virgin Points on flights operated by WestJet, whether they're marketed as VS (Virgin Atlantic) or WS (WestJet) flight numbers. The earning rates will depend on your booking class and Flying Club status.

A few important notes:

This is where it gets interesting. You can now redeem Virgin Points for flights on WestJet-operated services, subject to availability. WestJet's network includes some routes where award availability can be easier to find than on legacy carriers.

For those planning trips to destinations like Banff (via Calgary) or Vancouver Island, this partnership suddenly makes those aspirational trips more achievable using points.

Virgin Atlantic and WestJet are co-located at Toronto Pearson's Terminal 3, which should make connections smoother. As a SkyTeam member, Virgin Atlantic Flying Club status should translate to some benefits on WestJet, though the airlines haven't published comprehensive status benefit tables yet.

If you hold Virgin Atlantic Gold, you'll have SkyTeam Elite Plus status, which should provide priority check-in, boarding, and baggage benefits. However, WestJet isn't a full SkyTeam member – they just have this partnership with Virgin Atlantic – so the extent of recognition remains to be seen.

I'm cautiously optimistic about this partnership. Virgin Atlantic's return to Canada has been a long time coming, and having a strong feeder airline like WestJet significantly enhances the route's viability. For UK points collectors, it means more flexibility in how we earn and redeem points across North America.

The fact that Virgin Atlantic has deployed their largest aircraft (the A350-1000) on the Toronto route shows they're serious about this market. Combined with WestJet's extensive domestic Canadian network, this could become a genuinely useful way to explore Canada whilst maximising your points earning.

That said, I'm waiting to see more details on award availability and redemption rates before getting too excited. Virgin Atlantic's dynamic pricing can be excellent or expensive depending on the route and date, so it'll be interesting to see how competitive WestJet redemptions are.

The partnership is expected to deepen throughout 2025, with potentially more benefits and routes being added. Virgin Atlantic has also appointed a Canada Country Manager (Stephen Goulding, who previously held leadership roles at WestJet), suggesting they're building for the long term.

For now, if you're planning a Canadian adventure, this partnership gives you one more tool in your points-collecting arsenal. Combined with Virgin Atlantic's recent High Five loyalty reward and their ongoing transfer bonuses from American Express, Flying Club is starting to look increasingly competitive for UK travellers.

Have you booked any flights on this new Toronto route yet? I'd love to hear your experiences with the WestJet partnership in the comments below.