4/25/2008 at 9:35 AM
Tags: Virgin Galactic, Richard Branson, Space Travel, Space Tourism, Australia Travel (all tags)
Got your spaceflight booked yet with Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic? They're still saying the first space tourist flights should take off next year at a cost of $200,000--or two million frequent flier points.
Initially, the suborbital space flights will blast off from the Californian desert, but if the government of South Australia has any say in it, that might change. The SA Tourist Commissioner has suggested to Branson that the vast nothingness that makes up much of the south-central Australian state would be the perfect launching pad for Virgin Galactic flights.
If Branson considers all those nasty nuclear tests that happened in the area in the 60s, he might be able to increase his profit line by not even taking off--some of that desert probably looks just like outer space already.
Related Stories:
· South Australia Wants Space Tourists [ABC]
· Virgin Galactic Unveils Space Ship Two [Jaunted]
· Virgin's Free Space Flight [Jaunted]
[Photo: wouter!]
by amandak
4/11/2008 at 10:18 AM
Tags: Frontier, Richard Branson, Virgin America, Chris Elliott, Airlines, Airline Bankruptcy (all tags)
So now Frontier has filed for bankruptcy, though the carrier won't be shutting down operations during its "restructuring." That means it's time for people on the WWW to start the guessing game as to who's next. Chris Elliott leads the way this morning with a few ideas--complete with odds of bankruptcy. (Sorry, Sun Country, but 2 to 1 is pretty bad.)
Noticeably absent from the list is Virgin America, which some industry analysts say is a candidate for closure. But maybe Elliott left VA off his list because Richard Branson is making the media rounds, talking up his American carrier:
They're doing well ahead of budget and we're very happy with the performance... If you sit here in three or four years time, it'll be flying to all the major American cities.
Well. We'll see.
Given how rapid the Skybus implosion was--and how up-and-down all this renewed Delta merger talk is--we're gonna sit out this round of speculation. If you've got any real info on what's next, you'll find us at the airport bar.
Related Stories:
· Airline Deathwatch: Place Your Bets Please [Elliott]
· Branson Says Virgin Will Not Fail [Reuters]
· Airline Investors Find They're Losing Altitude [Houston Chronicle]
by pbb
3/31/2008 at 8:38 AM
Tags: V Australia, Airlines, New Routes, Fare Wars, Richard Branson (all tags)
Last week we asked, "Is V Australia about to officially announce LAX-SYD service at a press conference?" Turns out, yes. The newest carrier from Richard Branson will go wheels up on December 15, 2008.
The super-cheap promo fares for the first few days are already sold out, but you can still get some incredible deals in December. We found a round trip for $1,747, while Kayak reports the cheapest non-stop Qantas fare for the same dates is $2,582.
In addition to great fares, V Australia has also released cabin details. In coach, seat pitch is 32 inches with a recline of 6 inches, and every seat will have a 9-inch screen for on-demand in-flight entertainment. And if you need or want to stay online, the airline's 777s will have cell phone connectivity, letting you SMS and browse the Internet on your GSM device. What, no in-flight WiFi?
Related Stories:
· Virgin Launches Flights between Sydney and Los Angeles [AP, via IHT]
· V Australia Cabin Details [Official Site]
· Calculated Speculation: V Australia Edition [Jaunted]
· V Australia coverage [Jaunted]
by pbb
3/27/2008 at 2:30 PM
Tags: V Australia, Airlines, New Airlines, Australia, Richard Branson, Virgin Blue (all tags)
Is V Australia about to officially announce LAX-SYD service at a press conference? That is the likeliest first route--or perhaps SFO-SYD--for the international arm of Australia's Virgin Blue Airlines.
We hear there's an "event" happening in Los Angeles this Monday, 3/31. Let's say this is the big shebang and we get an official ticket sale date and launch date (probably early fall '08) for LAX-SYD...will they give us cabin details? And more importantly, PRICING? Where do you think V Australia is going with these details?
We say: hopefully, as far as pricing goes, to the sub-$1000 (round-trip) sweet spot...sweet spot for flights between the U.S. and Australia, that is. Oh, the soothing lullaby of skies opening up...
Related Stories:
· V Australia [Official Site]
· V Australia [Wikipedia]
[Photo: scherre]
by djk
3/20/2008 at 9:15 AM
Tags: Richard Branson, David Neeleman, New Airlines, Embraer, E-190 (all tags)
Looks like David Neeleman really is up to something down in Brazil. His go-to airline manufacturer, Embraer, confirmed to the AP that the ex-JetBlue CEO is looking to buy some mid-range jets.
Neeleman isn't talking about his plans, and JetBlue insists it has nothing to do with a possible new carrier in South America. (We of course are dreaming of a collaboration with Richard Branson.)
The two major airlines in Brazil use bigger planes than the E-190s Neeleman is shopping for. But he certainly has experience with the 100-seaters his looking to buy: JetBlue flies the same planes on shorter, in-demand routes in the US.
Related Stories:
· Embraer Confirms Talks to Sell Jets [AP, via IHT]
· Neeleman's Latest Moves in Brazil [Jaunted]
· A Neeleman-Branson Airline? [Jaunted]
by pbb
3/11/2008 at 11:35 AM
Tags: V Australia, Airlines, Richard Branson, Tony Fernandes, Kendra Wilkinson, Open Skies, AirAsia, Air Asia X (all tags)
Serial publicity hound Richard Branson is headed Down Under later this month to reveal the details on Virgin's latest airline, V Australia.
The start-up is a spin off of Virgin Blue, set to challenge Qantas on flights between Oz and the US before the end of 2008. Interestingly, Branson's visit is timed to coincide with the opening of London Heathrow's Terminal 5--the new home of Virgin rival British Airways.
We're guessing RB won't be taking Kendra Wilkinson along on his trip south, but he won't be hyping V Australia all alone. AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes will be in Melbourne too, talking up his new routes to Malaysia.
Related Stories:
· Branson to Reveal V Australia Plans [Aviation Record]
· Open Skies Travel: Transpacific Routes Now (Sorta) Open [Jaunted]
· Jaunted Interviews: Surprise Call from Richard Branson [Jaunted]
· V Australia coverage [Jaunted]
by pbb
2/28/2008 at 10:43 AM
Tags: Richard Branson, David Neeleman, Airlines, New Airlines (all tags)
JetBlue founder David Neeleman is one step closer to starting up a new carrier. The entrepreneur had a big meeting yesterday with the director of Brazil's Civil Aeronautics Agency, but a spokeswoman said no formal proposal was filed during the talks.
Earlier reports have it that Neeleman already has $200 million lined up to start an airline featuring mid-range Embraer jets. (They're the same model JetBlue flies on shorter routes like JFK to Boston.) Interestingly, only a handful of Embraers, which are made outside São Paulo, have ever flown commercially in Brazil.
While we speculated last week that Richard Branson might have some money behind this plan, there's still no proof of that. Still, as a Brazilian citizen, Neeleman won't likely face regulatory hurdles the way other airline executives might. And that has to have the two major carriers in the country, TAM and Gol, at least a little worried.
Related Stories:
· JetBlue Founder Proposes New Air Carrier [AP, via IHT]
· Neeleman Confirms Interest in Carrier [AE, in Portuguese]
· Rampant Speculation: A Neeleman-Branson Airline? [Jaunted]
· New Airlines coverage [Jaunted]
by pbb
2/25/2008 at 9:00 AM
Tags: Richard Branson, Virgin Atlantic, Green Travel (all tags)
Wanna fly green? Fly on coconut oil. That sounds pretty environmentally friendly, which is no doubt the impression Richard Branson was hoping to give us with the weekend's biofuel test flight on a passenger-free Virgin Atlantic flight from London to Amsterdam.
The maiden voyage using a mix of coconut oil, babassu oil and normal, nasty kerosene was a success, especially as plenty of press reports failed to mention the kerosene. Some, however, reminded us that the plant matter made up just 20% of the fuel in just one of the four engines. Doesn't sound like a lot.
But Branson is already talking about research to use other fuels, including one made from algae. What we can't understand is why he isn't researching an even more environmentally friendly (and convenient) method of getting around, like, say, teleporting.
Related Stories:
· Biofuel-Powered Jet Makes Test Flight [CNN]
· Virgin Atlantic To Fly Biofuel 747 [Jaunted]
· Virgin Atlantic coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: TigerPuppala]
by amandak
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