Virgin America Adds New Routes

" True condition is virgin America's expanding the airlines stay in this airline actually announced this morning it will begin serving. Fort Lauderdale Hollywood international airport -- daily nonstop flights from the west coast beginning in November just a few months away. I've virgin America's newest route will include two daily flights from San Francisco at a Fort Lauderdale. And two from Los Angeles as well some more on this thing good to share with Cisco and David cushions the president and CEO of virgin. America good morning to you mister -- she got there in my hometown of San Francisco primarily."

" Thank you -- thanks for having me so why Florida."

" Well you know I think the key thing is we have a product that is uniquely suited for long haul flying you know we've got a lot of electronics onboard with flight TV with. A high speed Internet with power outlets under every city. And the long haul travelers really embraced our our product -- recently initiated service in Boston it's been a runaway we've added additional frequencies and there. And not South Florida seem like the next logical place to go."

" You know work obviously during an -- in in tough economic times right now at flights for leisure travel overall are lower show you're dispatching a leisure travel being able to enjoy the flight -- long haul so why expand during this time."

" What part of it is our business plan you know we with these flights will be -- 28 aircraft this is a business that requires a certain amount of scale. Economies of scale on the cost side network scale on the revenue side. And we realized with our business plan we really need to get to forty to fifty airplanes to adored those. Structural economic benefit the other thing I would say also though is that our performance this summer's been knocked out quite good against the relatively bad performance of the industry we've seen you know revenues increases your over your. While the industry has seen fifteen to 20% decline so we're quite confident going into this market."

" At a discount airlines how do you make sure that you stay competitive with the volatile fuel costs that we've seen over the last several months several years."

" Well that's really a tough question you know we're quite well heads into 2010 and 2000 laden with roughly about 30% of our consumption. -- in the low sixties but. You know it is it is the most destabilizing thing for our industry you know the volatility of fuel prices and while people think seventy dollar fuel sounds pretty good. If you take away the aberration of last summer we are at historical fuel fuel prices and it's going to be very difficult for the industries just to sustain."

" Is there any strategy that you think you can continue going into 3233. To make sure that you maintain. I your competitive next."

" Why I think the key thing of course is putting a good product out there at a good price if people want to buy that's our number one strategy is. Just having the best product and I think we're recognized as having the best product in the market right now. The second thing of course is to make your cost basis -- slow and to go away and limit the volatility of fuel by hedging."

" Work -- you know I was surprised to find out that you are the only California based airlines and because California's -- says that while financial turmoil itself as expected do you. And your company in any way."

" What we certainly have seen some of you know the corporate travel is down a -- fortunately. For now we are not as dependent on corporate travel as other big network carriers are that we are a little bit more focused on leisure so. We've been -- to withstand it and I'll tell you the other thing is we've seen. A lot of corporate travel chair show from the major airlines to us so we've we've actually been quite happy with our results over the last several months."

" who would be your biggest competitor your closest competitor to attack the services and provide."

" Well as far as network goes our network overlap as with American and united so we -- primarily on the routes that they fly. I I would say as far as service people seem to you. Equate this morning jetBlue because the white TV. But we've got other things that perhaps jetBlue doesn't have to."

" Quick question on the humanities I was on a flight data on your airline from New York head to California recently. And they should all the different amenities but not all of them all working at it yet and there was a shyness and they'll -- coming. I should the TV worked and some of the movies like British fashion the other things that you've appetizing weren't working is that the case says. A motion airlines that you have to upgrade. All of them to get those amenities fully functioning."

" Yeah I think a lot of it is just you know you you have a plan which -- software and it takes time but the software and we just had a major upgrade tort system. That we put in this month were most of the additional. Functionality in terms of onboard shopping and other things will be working and it's just really a work in progress you know would be applying for about two years. Really as of Saturday two years so it takes a little time to get some of these things."

" They'll maybe I should be thanking you for not having online shopping available because that could be dangerous -- have -- on a flight and I look forward to your next trip. Yet for sure on that though I hadn't had to make any cuts to keep up with the environment I know that you're expanding this -- as far as staffing. Or anything else had to cut back -- in life."

" No we've we've been very prudent in our growth you know we are fast growth airline but we've been very careful. We have not had any staff play offs and as a matter fact we continue to hire so we we're very optimistic about the -- where are you hiring as our viewers out. What is primarily and and not San Francisco and Los Angeles you know were hiring ground workers were hiring -- crew and others."

" As it's now thank you so much David -- candidate for chairman just this morning. I appreciate the perspective congratulations on the expansion and and we'll -- against him."