Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Atlantic admitted today that it is reviewing the future of its famous onboard massage treatments.

The Times reported last week that all 280 beauty therapists working for Virgin had been called to a meeting to discuss the future of their in-flight services.

According to Virgin, its Upper Class passengers have become ambivalent about the service and would rather go to sleep.

The airline said it was reviewing the in-flight treatments but it is almost certain that the service will be scrapped. The beauty therapists are expected to be offered regular cabin crew jobs or be moved to an expanded spa facility at Virgin's Upper Class lounge at Heathrow.

Lyell Strambi, Virgin's chief operating officer, said: “All of our inflight beauty therapists will be offered a job as cabin crew or elsewhere within the airline if the review concludes that the onboard service should be withdrawn. The airline is currently consulting with our staff and their union about the review of its inflight beauty service."

Virgin introduced the service, which is only available on certain flights into and out of Heathrow, in 1990 as a way of differentiating its Upper Class service from that offered by its rivals.

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