Virgin America Is Out, Alaska Air is In

virgin america merger andrew barnett fort lauderdale

Virgin America Is Out, Alaska Air is In

It’s official: Virgin America is no more.

 

As of Wednesday, April 25, 2018, Virgin America officially became part of the Alaska Air Group family, and its flight network part of the Alaska Airlines brand. This deal has been in the works for some time now, since Alaska Air Group acquired Virgin America in December, for a total of $2.6 billion. Both parties are eager to form their new union and begin serving their customers in this new capacity.

 

For the moment, Virgin America’s 67 Airbus narrowbody planes will continue to represent the former Virgin America brand until they’re scheduled to begin repainting this fall. The goal is to complete their makeovers by the end of 2019, at which point their logos will match the ones on Alaska’s Boeing narrowbodies.

 

Already, though, the Virgin America website redirects users to AlaskaAir.com, and all of the former Virgin America signs are being changed to reflect their Alaska brand. Now, when you pass the gates, ticket counters, check-in areas, and baggage claim, it’s all Alaska Air.

 

To make the transition as smooth as possible, Alaska has done extensive research on previous mergers and worked to apply those lessons to avoid potential problems as the integration process begins. Alaska Air spokesperson Ann Johnson explains, “Starting on April 25, every passenger flying on an Airbus route or Airbus aircraft has a reservation with Alaska….Every passenger who arrives for a flight with us on April 25 is already an Alaska passenger, not a Virgin America passenger being moved to an Alaska flight.”

 

It is Alaska Air’s ultimate goal to avoid passenger inconvenience as much as possible, which is why there is already a single reservation system and app for anyone flying Virgin America or Alaska, to streamline the process.

 

If you’re wondering what you have to look forward to with this acquisition, or a better visual of how these airlines merging will look, the Alaska Airlines’ website projects the following changes:

 

Spring 2018:

  • West Coast-inspired in-flight food and drink options
  • High speed satellite Wi-Fi installation in Airbus aircraft in April, and in Boeing aircraft starting this fall
  • A single reservation system and mobile app for finding and booking flights, and check-ins.

 

Fall 2018:

  • Airbus fitted with Alaska’s cabin design
  • Flights newly operating out of Paine Field, including 13 daily departures to various West Coast markets

 

2019:

  • Integration complete

 

If you’re planning to fly with Alaska Air sometime soon, please feel free to comment with your thoughts and let us know how it went!

No Comments

Leave a Comment