Virgin Atlantic is delighted to announce that it has won a prestigious DBA Design Effectiveness Award for its Upper Class Suite, taking the total number of major design awards for the Upper Class Suite to eleven. The product, which is now flying on 28 of the airline�s fleet of 33 aircraft, has been responsible for a market share shift to Virgin Atlantic from rival airlines and attributed to a 26% increase in business class travellers in its last financial year, which the airline announced earlier this year.

Virgin Atlantic is now 5th in the DBA�s Client League Table and the Virgin Atlantic In-house Design Team are now in the top twenty of the DBA�s Design Consultancy League Table - at an equal 19th position.

Virgin Atlantic is also delighted to announce that in Design Week�s Creative Survey for 2005 the Virgin Atlantic In-House Design team have now entered the Product Design Chart in 4th place. They also moved up two places to equal 32nd position in the Top 50 Chart of UK Design Awards.

Sir Richard Branson, Chairman of Virgin Atlantic, said: �We are delighted with this recognition received for the Upper Class Suite. These awards are testament to the efforts and talent of our in-house design team and all those involved in the development of the Upper Class Suite.�

Joe Ferry, Virgin Atlantic�s Head of Design, said:

�Whilst we have already won many major design awards for the Upper Class Suite, the Design Effectiveness Awards prove that we not only have the capability of producing high standards of design but that we do it in a way that has positive impact on Virgin Atlantic's business performance."

"The Virgin Atlantic in-house design team and their team of external design consultants continue to strive for new and even more exciting designs to keep Virgin Atlantic ahead of its competitors. This latest award encourages us to keep on producing the best designs and innovations we can for Virgin Atlantic."

The aim of the redesign of the Upper Class cabin was to create a new travel experience based around an �air of natural glamour�. The centrepiece of the cabin is its revolutionary seat and bed. Different to anything else flying today, the product was designed to be separately both the most comfortable bed and the most comfortable seat in the air. Virgin Atlantic�s seat provides the passenger with a luxury leather armchair to relax on which then flips over into a separate bed with a mattress to sleep on. The Suite design is the result of a collaboration between Virgin Atlantic�s In-house Design Team and design consultants Pearson Lloyd and Design Q.

In August, Virgin Atlantic Airways unveiled the first phase of its new �11m flagship business class lounge, the Clubhouse at Heathrow airport. The spectacular 2,500 square metre environment has been designed by the Virgin Atlantic design team and London based architectural practice Softroom who previously worked on the interior design of the Upper Class Suite cabin. The Clubhouse�s centrepiece is a spa, which will set new standards for the industry by being the first spa pool, steam room and sauna in an airline lounge.

Awards for the Upper Class Suite

2005 DBA Design Effectiveness Awards Winner, Product - Industrial

2005 WALLPAPER Winner of Most Life Enhancing Item

2005 LIGHTING DESIGN AWARDS Winner in Transportation Category

2004 D&AD AWARDS Winner Silver Award (Yellow Pencil), Product Design

2004 IDEA AWARDS Winner IDEA Gold Award, Transportation Design

2004 DESIGN WEEK AWARDS Best Industrial Product Design

2004 ID ANNUAL REVIEW AWARDS Best in Category, Furniture

2004 RED DOT AWARDS Best of the Best of High Quality Design

2004 RED DOT AWARDS Best of High Quality Design

2004 IF DESIGN AWARDS Winner, Transport Design

2003 FX AWARDS Winner, Best Leisure Furniture Award

For further information please contact the Virgin Atlantic Press Office on 01293 747373 or log onto www.virginatlantic.com

Note to Editors:

Virgin Atlantic

Joe Ferry Head of Design & one of the inventors of the Suite

Design Agencies PearsonLloyd Seat Designers & Design Language

Softroom Design Language & Cabin Architecture

Design Q and Q Trim Seat Invention & Trim Definition

DHA Lighting Specification

PARK Strategic Design Fabric Development

ACRO Aeronautical Mechanism Inventors

Field Onboard graphics and packaging