The Virgin Angels look on as “Entourage” star Rex Lee helps Sir Richard Branson cut the cake in celebration of the launch of Virgin Charter.
By Di Freeze
Virgin Charter, an online marketplace, launched with a celebration in New York on March 3. Those in attendance included Scott Duffy, founder and CEO, and Sir Richard Branson, whose Virgin Airways is a majority owner in the company.
The company’s online marketplace, the “first-ever end-to-end solution for private air travel,” says Virgin Charter, is the “smarter way to charter,” making it easier than ever to find and book charter flights on private aircraft from operators handpicked for their exceptional safety and quality standards.
The launch marks the conclusion of the closed beta period during which an exclusive group of corporate and individual buyers utilized the marketplace. Virgin Charter’s marketplace is free to join and offers clients immediate access to its cutting-edge technology.
Brian Pope, Virgin Charter’s chief marketing officer, displaying a “click me, I’m easy button,” visits with Richard Branson.
Duffy said that until now, booking on-demand charter has been a cumbersome process.
“Flyers didn’t always know what they were getting,” he said. “We’re bringing the power of Virgin to the industry and are now offering an entirely new way to book charter over the Internet while setting new quality standards.”
Branson said Virgin Charter has brought tremendous innovation to the charter market.
“Virgin’s brilliant customer service and aviation expertise combined with unprecedented technology prowess has resulted in a winning formula,” he said.
Clients manage their entire trip over the Internet, from submitting their trip request, to comparing offers from top charter operators, to selecting the best offer and buying it. Virgin-trained specialists are available anytime to help with clients’ needs.
Richard Branson, clasping the hand of Scott Duffy, Virgin Charter CEO and founder, said Virgin’s “brilliant customer service and aviation expertise combined with unprecedented technology prowess has resulted in a winning formula.”
Virgin Charter is privately held and headquartered in Santa Monica, Calif. Travelocity Business, a full-service corporate travel management company based in Southlake, Texas, is the exclusive launch business travel agency for Virgin Charter.
For more information, visit [http://www.virgincharter.com].
L to R: NATA President Jim Coyne; Santa Barbara Executive Jet President Doug Gotterba; Richard Branson; Wally Sippes, Exxon Avitat Westchester; Kim Di Metro, Avitat Network Worldwide; VC aviation advisor Dolores Johnson; Mi Kosasa, Bradley Pacific Hawaii.