Virgin takes off

After a storm in New York delayed the first scheduled flight of Virgin America, the airline finally took off.

According to spokesperson Gareth Edmonson-Jones, the flight was only 50 minutes late in departing. Chief Executive Fred Reid joined British entrepreneur Richard Branson on the inaugural flight and arrived at the airport late for take off.

“What a strange day,” said Branson, the founder of the Virgin Group. “I think half our guests haven’t made it to the airport.”

Also scheduled to take part in ceremony for the first flight was comedian Stephen Colbert. “He was in a car for 4 1/2 hours and turned around in the end,” Edmonson-Jones said.

The delays served to remind the airline of the difficult environment in which they are now expected to function.

“Everyone knows the quality of service of the big carriers in America has always been rather sad,” Branson said later after a news conference with San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom.

“The carriers have never cared about their passengers, never given their staff the tools they need, never entertained their passengers, and they keep going bankrupt, going into Chapter 11. The industry needs new blood, it needs Virgin America.”

www.virginamerica.com