Virgin America Resumes Its Seasonal Nonstop Flights To Palm Springs From JFK

SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 10, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Virgin America, the California-based airline that is reinventing air travel, today announces that it is resuming its popular seasonal flights to Palm Springs International Airport (PSP) from New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK). Just in time to book winter getaways, the airline is again expanding its service to Palm Springs with its 2013-2014 seasonal flight schedule from JFK to PSP – the only nonstop flight offered from the New York City area to the desert oasis.  The nonstop flight will add to Virgin America's seasonal daily connecting flight schedule from JFK to PSP and its seasonal daily nonstop schedule from SFO to PSP. Tickets are on sale as of today at www.virginamerica.com and 1-877-FLY-VIRGIN.*

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20090123/VIRGINAMERICALOGO)

"Since entering the Palm Springs market, we've seen strong guest demand for our unique flight service and are pleased to resume our nonstop flights from New York to the desert this winter," said Adam Green, Director of Network Planning at Virgin America. "We're thankful for the partnership and support of the airport, city and tourism community in welcoming our service back and continuing to help us grow."

With topnotch guest service, beautiful design and a variety of innovative amenities, Virgin America has earned a host of industry awards since launching service in 2007, including "Best Domestic Airline" in Travel + Leisure's World's Best Awards in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 and "Best Domestic Airline" in Conde Nast Traveler's 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 Readers' Choice Awards. With one of the youngest fleets in the U.S., Virgin America offers guests sleek, tech-forward aircraft cabins with custom-designed seating, fleetwide inflight WiFi, signature "moodlighting," power outlets near every seat and the most advanced in-flight entertainment system in the skies. The Red^™ in-flight entertainment platform offers every traveler a seatback touch-screen with on-demand films, live and premium TV, interactive Google Maps, music videos, videogames, seat-to-seat chat, a 4,000 MP3 library and an on-demand menu – so guests can order a cocktail or meal from their seatback at any time during the flight. In April 2013, the airline added the ability for guests to send a menu item via the touch-screen menu to fellow travelers in another seat.

"The City of Palm Springs is thrilled that Virgin America will continue its service from Palm Springs to New York this season," said Mayor Steve Pougnet. "Palm Springs is the premiere resort destination in Southern California and I want to thank Virgin America for their commitment to serving the Palm Springs region, like no place else."

"Greater Palm Springs' nine cities are a popular getaway with world-class attractions drawing visitors from all parts of the world," said Scott White, President and CEO for the Greater Palm Springs Convention & Visitors Bureau. "With the continuation of Virgin America's nonstop JFK-PSP roundtrip service, guests from New York City and the surrounding regions can escape colder weather and experience events from our music and arts festivals and sports tournaments to celebrations of fashion and architecture."

Greater Palm Springs is the ultimate destination for outdoor adventure, arts and culture and entertainment.  The nine cities: Palm Springs, Desert Hot Springs, Cathedral City, Rancho Mirage, Palm Desert, Indian Wells, La Quinta, Indio and Coachella offer streets lined with palm trees, the best in shopping, art galleries, museums and outdoor dining – all amidst breathtaking scenery.  In addition to luxury resorts and world-class golfing, the region has welcomed an influx of hip boutique hotels and landmark events like the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.  Palm Springs has a long history of being a Hollywood celebrity getaway– and is known as the center of "Desert Modernism" mid-century modern architecture.  For more, visit: www.visitgreaterpalmsprings.com and www.visitpalmsprings.com.  

Last year, Virgin America launched a suite of enhancements to its Elevate® frequent flyer program – including Elevate Gold and Elevate Silver status levels that offer perks such as:  priority check-in, security clearance and boarding; points earning bonuses; free checked bag allowances; enhanced digital/social rewards; private discounts; an expanded advance purchase upgrade window for the airline's exclusive eight-seat First Class; complimentary space-available upgrades to the carrier's premium Main Cabin Select service; and complimentary access to the best seat assignments within Main Cabin.

Virgin America's 2013-2014 nonstop JFK-PSP flight schedule is as follows:

Connecting flights are also available from PSP to Virgin America's New York (JFK), Boston (BOS), Philadelphia (PHL), Fort Lauderdale (FLL) and Washington D.C. (IAD/DCA) cities. 

Photos of Virgin America's unique aircraft: http://www.virginamerica.com/about/airline-photos/virgin-america-pictures.html 
For photos of Virgin America's 2011 Palm Springs inaugural flight with Virgin Group Founder Sir Richard Branson: http://www.virginamerica.com/vx/palm-springs-launch 
Broadcast quality video b-roll can also be downloaded at: https://www.virginamerica.com/html/39049.zip.

Since its launch in 2007, Virgin America has expanded its footprint across the U.S. and now flies to San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Newark, Washington D.C. (IAD and DCA), Las Vegas, San Diego, Seattle, Boston, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Dallas-Fort Worth, Los Cabos, Cancun, Chicago, Puerto Vallarta, Palm Springs (seasonal), Philadelphia, Portland, San Jose, Austin and Anchorage (seasonal).

About Virgin America: Headquartered in California, Virgin America offers guests attractive fares and a host of innovative features aimed at reinventing air travel. The airline's base of operations is San Francisco International Airport (SFO)'s sleek new Terminal 2. The airline's new aircraft offer interactive in-flight entertainment systems and power outlets near every seat. Virgin America offers Gogo^™ WiFi on every flight and hosts the largest in-flight entertainment library in the North American skies via the touch-screen Red^™ platform. For more: www.virginamerica.com.

*Any guest calling within the United States has access to a complimentary telecommunication relay service by dialing 711. For more information, go to: http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/hearing/telecomm.asp  

SOURCE Virgin America