Graduate Engineer

Salary: Competitive

Hours: Full time, 37.5 hours per week. Monday to Friday

Location: Heathrow

Contract: Permanent

Commencing: September 2026

Closing Date: 16th February 2026

At Virgin Atlantic Airways, we believe that everyone can take on the world, and it’s our vision to become the most loved travel company. As we embark on this next exciting stage of our journey, we’re harnessing our spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation to challenge the status quo.

In a nutshell, we’re delighted to announce our Virgin Atlantic graduate engineering scheme for 2026, where we seek to appoint four graduate hotshots into our two-year programme, with a permanent job at the end of it and the opportunity to work towards your IEng/CEng professional registration. Through this initiative you’ll experience the full scope of our world-class engineering operation, working with one of the youngest, cleanest, and most state-of-the-art fleets in the skies.

When we say ‘graduate hotshots’, we mean more than just strong academic achievement. We’re looking for people from all walks of life who can think red, make friends and be truly amazing – which are at the heart of our company values. So, if you’re not afraid to push boundaries and reach for the skies (literally), we’d love to hear from you.

To sweeten the deal, after your first 6 months we’ll give you 7 free of fare flights every year, anywhere on the Virgin Atlantic Network.

Day to day:

• Join a dynamic, fully immersive two-year training programme based at our Heathrow hangar and airport locations, with a permanent Continued Airworthiness Engineering role on completion.
• Learn first-hand from the best aircraft engineers in the business, while working on our beautifully designed Boeing 787-9s, Airbus A350s and the very latest A330neos.
• Experience some of the most exciting areas of aircraft engineering – including managing the continued airworthiness of the aircraft's propulsion, airframe systems, avionics, cabin, structures and reliability.
• Have the opportunity to take a lead on exciting projects and fine tune your commercial skills.
• This is a back-of-house engineering placement designed to give you real insight into our Continued Airworthiness Organisation.
• You’ll rotate through a series of three-month placements, working alongside our teams in Propulsion, Avionics, Cabin, Mechanical Systems and Maintenance Programmes – building a broad understanding of how we keep our fleet safe, compliant and flying at its best.
• In addition to the above core placements, we offer once in a lifetime opportunity to complete three months’ learning in our world class Hangar and Line maintenance facility in Heathrow.
• Plus, up to three optional placements across any VAA internal stakeholder.

If this sounds like your kind of journey, here’s what happens next:

• Video interviews will take place in March – a chance for us to get to know you a little better, and for you to show us how you think.
• Successful candidates will then be invited to an Assessment Centre, where you’ll meet our people, explore the role in more depth and get a real feel for life at Virgin Atlantic.

About You:

• Are you a recent engineering graduate (or about to graduate) with a keen interest in aviation?
• Do you want to work in a supportive and inclusive environment where your skills and opinions really count?
• A Bachelors or Masters Engineering degree, 2:1 or above, in a directly related discipline (either obtained or expecting).
• A genuine passion for engineering and aviation.
• A drive to reimagine the world and lead the way with fresh ideas.
• Work experience with an airline or aviation business would be great but isn’t essential.

We ask that you upload your CV and answer some questions once you click to apply. There’s no need to upload a cover letter or any other documents (unless you really want to). Just think carefully about the questions, keep your answers concise and include the important stuff!

Be yourself – Our differences make us stronger. Our customers come from all walks of life and so do our colleagues. That’s why we’re proud to be an equal opportunity employer and actively encourage applications from all backgrounds.

At Virgin Atlantic, we believe everyone can take on the world - no matter your age, gender, gender identity, gender expression, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disabilities, religion, or beliefs. We celebrate difference and everything that makes our colleagues unique by upholding an inclusive environment in which we can all thrive.

To make your journey with us accessible and individual to you, we encourage you to let us know if you’d like a little extra help with your application, or if you have any individual requirements at any stage along your recruitment journey.

Our recipe for Leadership:

At Virgin Atlantic, our leaders empower teams to thrive through collaboration, innovation, and excellence.