British Airways London-Las Vegas non-stop, daily flight soon

British Airways will launch direct, daily flights between McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas, the United States, and Heathrow International Airport in London, from October 25, 2009. British Airways’ inaugural flight from London is scheduled to land at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas at 5:10 p.m.

The return trip to London’s Heathrow International Airport, the busiest international airport in the world, will leave London at 7 p.m.

In a statement, British Airways said that, on the London-Las Vegas route, the airline would use a Boeing 777 aircraft.

The plane would have a configuration of 274 seats – 24 of which would be ‘world traveler plus,’ 36 business-class with seats that recline fully to 180 degrees, and 214 economy-class seats.

Fares would start at $461 round trip, excluding taxes and fuel surcharges.

The fares are available for booking from May 18, 2009, on British Airways’ website www.ba.com.

On October 25, 2009, British Airways will become the second airline based in the United Kingdom to operate direct, daily service to Las Vegas.

At present, Virgin Atlantic – owned by Richard Branson’s Virgin Group and Singapore Airlines – flies between Las Vegas and Gatwick Airport in London.

Las Vegas will be the 19th city in the United States to be served by British Airways.

British Airways said the company had identified 35 major cities – including Rome, Prague, Stockholm and Paris – from which passengers could connect to Las Vegas with less than two hours of waiting at London’s Heathrow Airport.

The Heathrow Airport, the statement from British Airways added, “would put Las Vegas within one stop of cities around the world, making it easier for people to travel to Las Vegas.”

A spokesman of British Airways was quoted as saying that if the carrier flies on the London-Las Vegas route at 72% load factor, the average load factor for British Airways in the latest reporting period, it would mean about 12,000 arrivals and departures at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas a month.

This number, according to the spokesman, could be higher if British Airways matches the 92% load factor that Virgin Atlantic has achieved on the route, flying from London’s Gatwick Airport, an airport smaller in size and with less connection potential than London’s Heathrow Airport.

According to data, while a typical international tourist spends $1,200 per visit to Las Vegas, a domestic traveller spends around $700.