Virgin reveals first look at its black-and-red Channel Tunnel trains set to rival Eurostar from 2030

From the Newshound archive · first published 9 October 2026 · last updated 10 October 2026.

Richard Branson's Virgin Group has unveiled a striking black-and-red design for its fleet of 12 Alstom Avelia Stream trainsets, capable of 300km/h, which will connect London with Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam from 2030. The company plans 20 daily return services, adding nearly 7.5 million extra seats a year to cross-Channel routes and creating up to 1,000 jobs. Virgin Group CEO Josh Bayliss said the company is drawing on 'more than four decades of experience across travel and hospitality to create something genuinely new'.

Virgin is the only prospective new Channel Tunnel operator to have secured UK track access, confirmed until at least 2040.

Onboard dining will be modelled on Virgin Voyages' award-winning food, while social spaces will take inspiration from Virgin Atlantic's famous airport Clubhouses.

Virgin has also signed a 30-year maintenance deal with Alstom and secured access to Eurostar's Temple Mills depot in east London.