New Delhi, Aug 31 (IANS): Offering seamless connections and increased opportunities for frequent fliers, Virgin Atlantic and IndiGo announced a new codeshare between the UK and India.

The codeshare partnership will mean customers booking a Virgin Atlantic ticket will be able to fly on the airline's flights from London's Heathrow to Delhi and Mumbai and connect to and fro to seven additional cities in India.

Later this year the agreement will be expanded to cover a total of 16 destinations throughout India, as well as connections onto Virgin Atlantic's extensive US network operated via London Heathrow. The agreement will allow Virgin Atlantic to sell seats to passengers connecting onto IndiGo flights.

The initial codeshare destinations in India include Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Goa, Delhi, and Mumbai. The additional destinations will include Kochi, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Pune, Coimbatore, Nagpur, Vadodara, Indore, and Visakhapatnam.

The new codeshare agreement will allow Virgin Atlantic's Flying Club members to reach their rewards faster, with opportunities to earn both Virgin Points and Tier Points available on every codeshare with IndiGo. The codeshare flights will be available this week for booking for travel beyond September 27, subject to government approval.

Juha Jarvinen, Chief Commercial Officer at Virgin Atlantic, said: "IndiGo is India's largest airline and its extensive network will offer Virgin Atlantic customers even more choice when travelling between the UK and India, as well as offering seamless connections for onward travel across our extensive US route network."

Ronojoy Dutta, Chief Executive Officer and Wholetime Director, IndiGo said, "This will not only help offer a seamless travel experience from London to as many as 16 destinations in India, but also open up international trade opportunities throughout the country via enhanced accessibility."