Jaunted

Virgin America's Fred Reid Counting the Days

10/25/2007 at 9:50 AM
Tags: Virgin America, Fred Reid, New Routes (all tags)

A few days ago, we mentioned the changes Virgin America CEO/poker enthusiast Fred Reid would like to see on his airline. That prompted Jaunted member markj to ask, "Does he still have to step down in November? That was the original deal."

Not in November, says airline spokeswoman Abby Lunardini. But Reid will have to step down on February 18, 2008:

The May 18, 2007 DOT final order stipulated that Fred would have to step down--based on his ties to Branson. Essentially, because Richard helped to hire him, the DOT claimed that Fred was beholden to him and therefore to "foreign interests." We were all surprised and sad about that--especially because Fred is one of the few people born and raised in SF [where VA is based].

That gives Reid less than four months to get more service off the ground. And here's something we didn't hear from Abby: When more routes are announced in the next few weeks, expect flights to San Diego to be among them.

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· What's Next for Virgin America [Jaunted]
· On the Scene: Virgin America's Party At Tryst [Jaunted]
· Virgin America coverage [Jaunted]