--- In BATN@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, "4/11 Redwood City Daily" <batn@...> wrote: Published Wednesday, April 11, 2007, by the Redwood City Daily News Virgin America agrees to comply with regulations Fledgling airline trying to clear the way for federal approval By Shaun Bishop Daily News Staff Writer Burlingame-based startup airline Virgin America said Tuesday it will meet all of the conditions required by federal transportation officials to allow it to fly out of San Francisco International Airport. In a filing with the U.S. Department of Transportation, the airline said its own "far-reaching changes" and compliance with other terms laid out by the government should assuage the department's previous concerns about foreign ownership of the company, which has financial backing from British billionaire Richard Branson. Barring a reversal of the department's tentative decision last month in favor of the airline, Virgin America hopes to gain final approval by next month and launch its first flights between SFO and New York's John F. Kennedy Airport sometime this summer. The department in December blocked Virgin America's attempts to operate discount flights out of the Bay Area, citing concerns that the company was not in line with federal rules that require 75 percent of a company's ownership and two-thirds of its governing board to be U.S. citizens. A group of domestic airlines -- including Delta, American and United -- also filed briefs urging officials to reject Virgin America's application for interstate travel. But last month, the department said a set of proposed changes by the airline, including removing some members of its board of directors, would meet the federal citizenship requirements, and gave tentative approval to its application. The airline did not agree with all the suggestions from federal officials. In its filing Tuesday, it protested an order from the transportation department to remove the airline's CEO Fred Reid, saying he is a U.S citizen and has an extensive industry background, but said it would reluctantly replace him if deemed necessary by the department. The airline's comments to the transportation department came at the end of a 21-day comment period during which interested parties could respond to the department's March 20 decision. As of Tuesday afternoon, transportation department spokesman Bill Mosely said he was not aware of any protests from any competing airlines, despite their earlier objections, but said such filings could be sent in electronically overnight. "It seems a fait accompli in the industry that this is going forward," said Virgin America spokesman Gareth Edmonson-Jones. Numerous elected officials have spoken in favor of the airline's effort to do business in the Bay Area, including Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rep. Tom Lantos and Burlingame Mayor Terry Nagel. The company says it could hire up to 3,000 employees, many of them in the Bay Area. E-mail Shaun Bishop at sbishop@... [BATN: See also: Editorial: Open Skies, Virgin America vs. US airline "protection" http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BATN/message/34380 Editorial: Virgin America to bring benefits, boost competition http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BATN/message/34262 New low-cost carrier flights likely to push SFO fares lower http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BATN/message/34261 Letter: BAEF boss Randolph: "let Virgin America fly" http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BATN/message/34226 Virgin America hopes for midsummer launch for SF-NY flight http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BATN/message/34209 ] --- End forwarded message --- <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> If you wish to unsubscribe from the AIRLINE List, please send an E-mail to: "listserv@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx". Within the body of the text, only write the following:"SIGNOFF AIRLINE".