Virgin America’s launch has been stymied by a new inquiry by US regulators into the airline’s ownership and its relationship with Virgin Group chairman Sir Richard Branson.
The US Department of Transportation request, which follows complaints from US carriers led by Continental Airlines and Delta Air Lines, also demands the submission of documents previously withheld by Virgin America as irrelevant.
Virgin America was established in 2004 and had planned to launch in mid-2005. The DoT says that following its initial review of Virgin’s application, it has “determined that additional and/or clarifying information is needed before we can make a fitness determination in this matter”.
Source: Flight International
