After an epic battle, Virgin America (IATA code: VX, seriously) has finally received approval from the DOT to start flying.
They jumped through a million hoops, and now they’ve finally finished this part of the process. If you’d like to read the 12 page ruling, go here (PDF).
In the end, CEO Fred Reid was forced to leave, but he’s received a stay of execution. He can stay up to 6 months after launch. According to a friend who flew through SFO last week, the AirTrain at the airport says that Virgin America starts service on August 3. They haven’t said anything about it yet, but that sounds plausible.
I wish I could say that the hardest part is over for these guys, but really it’s just beginning. They’re not exactly starting on less traveled routes (SFO to JFK), and the competition is going to be fierce. I do wish them luck, and hopefully I’ll get to try them out sometime once they start flying to LAX.
