Virgin America Grows Again: Announces Newportland Service And 50th Aircraft Delivery

March 16, 2012 Aviation No Comments  Print  Email

Virgin America, the airline that is reinventing domestic travel, announces it will bring its low-fare, award-winning service to Portland International Airport (PDX) as of June 5, 2012, with tickets on sale today for two daily nonstop flights from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and one daily nonstop flight from San Francisco International Airport (SFO). Known for outstanding guest service, custom-designed cabins with three classes of service, and touch-screen in-flight entertainment at every seat, Virgin America has swept the major reader-based travel awards since the airline launched in 2007. At a time when most U.S. carriers have been cutting capacity, Virgin America is expanding to its 18th destination and bringing much-needed nonstop competition from California’s largest airports to PDX. When entering new markets that offer little low-fare competition, the airline has frequently seen fares drop by up to 30 percent.

“Our airline launched in 2007 because we believed travelers deserved better choices in air travel. We are excited to start new service to PDX and we hope our unique blend of low fares and inventive service will be a fresh alternative for Portland travelers,” said Virgin America President and CEO David Cush. “Although there are strong business and leisure travel ties between California and Portland, the West Coast to PDX market generally has higher fares than similar flights to Seattle and the reason is competition. We are thrilled to offer Portland travelers a different choice – in an industry often characterized by monotony.”

Main Cabin Select

In honor of its newest city, the airline is launching a systemwide fare sale, with PDX-LAXand PDX-SFO fares from $99* (taxes and fees included and restrictions applying). Tickets are available for purchase now at www.virginamerica.com and at            1.877.FLY.VIRGIN      .** Today, Virgin America is also asking its social media followers to submit “Portland-themed” plane names to grace its 50th aircraft, which will launch into the airline’s rapidly growing fleet in April. The top five names will be voted on and selected by the carrier’s teammates. The final winner will see their name at 35,000 feet on the side of a new Airbus A320 aircraft and score two roundtrip flights on the new Portland route.*** For more details, visit: http://vgn.am/vxpdx

“We’re pleased to welcome Virgin America to Portland International Airport,” said Bill Wyatt, Port of Portland executive director. “Virgin America is known for its award-winning service and for doing things differently, and will bring PDX travelers new options for two of our most popular routes—Los Angeles and San Francisco.”

Mood Lighting

Virgin America has taken top honors as “Best U.S. Airline” in both Condé Nast Traveler’sReaders’ Choice Awards and Travel + Leisure’s World’s Best Awards for the past four consecutive years. The airline was named “Most Eco-Friendly Airline” by Smarter Travelfor its investments and its new fleet – which is up to 25 percent more fuel efficient than the average fleet flying in the U.S. Virgin America’s new aircraft offer custom-designed mood-lit cabins, fleetwide WiFi, power outlets at every seat and the most advanced in-flight entertainment in the skies. Every Virgin America guest enjoys their own nine-inch seatback touch-screen with:

• More than 35 on-demand movies, including independent films, foreign language films and latest release blockbusters
• 18 channels of live TV and 6 channels of cached TV, including MSNBC, CNN, Bravo,ABC, CBS, Current TV and BoingBoing
• 3,000 song music library and the ability to create a custom play-list in-flight
• A videogame library
• Interactive Google Maps, so guests can track their journey at eight levels of zoom
• Onboard seat-to-seat chat messaging
• World’s first on-demand food and drink ordering system with a healthy menu named best in the U.S. by Travel + Leisure
• Carbon offsets available via partner Carbonfund.org

In addition to a Main Cabin that offers leather seating with a deeper, more comfortable pitch, the airline’s First Class offers plush white leather seats with 55 inches of pitch, 165 degrees of recline and lumbar massagers. The carrier’s Main Cabin Select offers 38-inches of pitch, free food and cocktails, an all-access pass to media, dedicated overhead bins and priority check-in/boarding.

The airline’s Portland schedule is as follows:

Connecting flights will also be available from PDX to Virgin America’s New York (JFK), Fort Lauderdale (FLL), Washington Dulles (IAD), Boston (BOS), Chicago (ORD), Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW), Las Vegas (LAS), San Diego (SAN), Cancun (CUN) and Philadelphia (PHL) markets.

First Class Cabin Seat

In just over four years flying, Virgin America has expanded to 18 destinations (includingPDX) and has created 2,500 new jobs. As one of the few growing U.S. airlines, Virgin America continues to expand its fleet, growing from 28 aircraft in service in the first quarter of 2010, to 50 aircraft as of April 2012. In 2011, the airline announced an order of60 new Airbus A320 aircraft, including the first order for the new eco-efficient A320neoand the new GE/CFM LEAP Engine, which together are expected to yield an additional 15 percent improvement in fuel efficiency. Virgin America flies to San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Washington D.C., Seattle, Las Vegas, San Diego, Boston, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Dallas-Fort Worth, Los Cabos, Cancun, Chicago, Puerto Vallarta, Palm Springs, Philadelphia (as of April 4, 2012) and Portland (as of June 5, 2012).

Broadcast quality video of the airline’s aircraft:
http://www.multivu.com/mnr/55168-virgin-america-flights-to-from-portland-international-airport-pdx-oregon
Photos of the airline: http://www.virginamerica.com/press-release.do

A full list of the airline’s awards can be found at:http://www.virginamerica.com/html/virgin_america_travel_awards.pdf