Things in the Sky

On Monday, Virgin Atlantic announced additional cooperation with fellow Virgin airlines Virgin Blue and V Australia, Virgin Blue’s long-haul airline. Since July, Virgin Atlantic passengers have been able to earn Flying Club miles on Virgin Blue flights, and Virgin Blue travelers could earn Velocity points on Virgin Atlantic. But now elites of both programs are getting some extra perks as well.

Virgin Atlantic says that Silver and Gold members of its Flying Club program will get perks like priority check-in and luggage, and Gold members will receive free lounge access. And while it’s not mentioned in the Virgin Atlantic press release, Gold members of Virgin Blue’s Velocity program receive free lounge access to some Virgin Atlantic Clubhouses, priority check-in, priority boarding, and others when flying with Virgin Atlantic.

“Through this arrangement we are able to further reward those who prefer to fly with and remain loyal to Virgin branded airlines,” said Steve Ridgway, Virgin Atlantic CEO. While I do not what to read too much into that soundbite, it sounds to me like Virgin is working on getting some kind of alliance going. Granted, there’s only so much they can do with a few carriers, but it’s still very interesting, and I wonder where Virgin America fits into this picture. It was announced last year that the carrier would get closer to Virgin Blue and allow passengers to earn miles in either loyalty program (the two carriers already have an interline agreement).

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