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Alaska Airlines petitions DOT on Virgin status

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Old School 737

NG's now and it is A OK!!
Joined
Jun 13, 2005
Posts
986
Alaska Airlines petitions DOT
on Virgin America citizen status

Goal is to ensure startup carrier
complies with foreign owner rules

February 10, 2009

Alaska Airlines today petitioned the U.S. Department of Transportation to conduct a public inquiry into the citizenship status of Virgin America.

Citing recent media reports that call into question Virgin’s compliance with U.S. foreign ownership and control restrictions on domestic carriers, Alaska Airlines asked the DOT to investigate Virgin’s current as well as prospective capital and governance structures and their effect on Virgin’s U.S. citizenship status.

Alaska's petition to the U.S. Department of Transportation (PDF - 33 pages)
U.S. law requires air carriers to be U.S. “citizens.” To qualify, the outstanding voting interests of the air carrier must be at least 75-percent owned by U.S. citizens and the carrier must also be effectively controlled by U.S. citizens.

Alaska’s petition cites news reports suggesting that Virgin America, founded by the British Virgin Group, may no longer be a U.S. citizen or is in clear danger of losing its citizenship. These include reports of investors owning 75 percent of Virgin America’s voting stock with imminent rights to sell their shares back to the foreign-owned Virgin Group and of new funding from investors, apparently including Virgin Group, under terms and conditions not revealed to the public.

“Only through a careful and ongoing review of Virgin America’s recent actions conducted on the public record can the DOT and public be assured that Virgin will remain a U.S. citizen,” said Keith Loveless, general counsel for Alaska Airlines.

Virgin America’s compliance with U.S. citizenship requirements was a point of controversy and debate during its certification proceeding. The DOT initially determined that Virgin America did not comply and required the company to restructure before granting initial certification.

“Since the issuance of their certificate, Virgin America’s structure and operations have clearly changed; however, there is a lack of public information about those changes or how they may impact its citizenship status,” Loveless said. “Alaska makes this request to ensure all U.S. carriers are held to the same standard of compliance with U.S. citizenship laws. Recent questions about Virgin’s ownership status establish a compelling need for a transparent review of its continuing compliance with these laws.”
 
Fuk'in 'A'

I hope all the US Airlines jump on this along with Alaska Airlines.
 
Absolutely.

If VA wants to operate it needs to do so within the confines of the laws that all other domestic carriers operate in. Branson's baby should not be allowed an inch of latitude in the law.
 
Does it really matter what their ownership status is at this moment? Even if Virgin is in violation, all that will happen is they will be given an ultimatum to comply and they will. Case closed!
 
Does it really matter what their ownership status is at this moment? Even if Virgin is in violation, all that will happen is they will be given an ultimatum to comply and they will. Case closed!

What are the possible outcomes? Could the DOT ground them? What other agencies would be involved? SEC?
 
Do you all really believe that the Virgin Group and Virgin America management team(s) would actually put the ownership structure in violation of the DOT requirements?

Instead of "tilting at windmills", I think that airline management teams have a whole host of other and bigger issues to worry about right now.

As an aside, virtually all of the pilots at VA were previously employed by various US carriers, where they were either furloughed from, or their carrier went out of business. Why wish ill will?

As a collective group, we should be supportive of a VA pilot's effort(s) in starting over, and also supportive in any efforts by the VA pilot group to make improvements in their terms and conditions of employment.

Skipper
 
Do you all really believe that the Virgin Group and Virgin America management team(s) would actually put the ownership structure in violation of the DOT requirements?

Instead of "tilting at windmills", I think that airline management teams have a whole host of other and bigger issues to worry about right now.

As an aside, virtually all of the pilots at VA were previously employed by various US carriers, where they were either furloughed from, or their carrier went out of business. Why wish ill will?

As a collective group, we should be supportive of a VA pilot's effort(s) in starting over, and also supportive in any efforts by the VA pilot group to make improvements in their terms and conditions of employment.

Skipper

Personally, I would prefer that the pilots that were furloughed from a mainline carrier weren't furloughed.
 

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