ALPA Scrutinizes DOT’s Tentative Approval of Virgin America

ALPA is withholding final comment on the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) decision to tentatively approve Virgin America’s application for certificate authority until the Association has an opportunity to review the complete, confidential version of the tentative decision.

The public version of DOT’s decision does not include significant portions of the Department’s discussion of many of the key mechanisms by which Richard Branson’s Virgin Group could exercise control over Virgin America. Until ALPA is able to examine the entire decision, it would be premature to draw definitive conclusions about the Department’s tentative findings.

ALPA intends to fully assess the complete decision, including the many conditions that DOT proposes to place on the relationship between Virgin Group and Virgin America, and to respond to DOT’s tentative findings at that time.

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