Sir Richardson Branson made a surprise appearance on a recent Delta Air Lines flight where he gifted everyone onboard who was a member of Delta’s SkyMiles frequent flyer club a free cruise on the newest ship from Virgin Voyages.
Of course, the entire event was a big publicity stunt but it was one that still came as a big surprise for the 190 passengers who were onboard the recent flight from Atlanta to San Juan, Puerto Rico.
No doubt they would have sensed something was up, however, when they arrived at the gate to find that Virgin Voyages had taken over the gate area with entertainment team dancers taking part in choreography, along with music and speciality drinks.
Sir Richard Branson made his first appearance at the gate area to host a game of roulette where passengers could win a slew of generous prizes, including free flights with Delta and Virgin Atlantic, as well as Virgin Hotel stays and Virgin Voyages cruises.
It wasn’t until passengers were onboard the flight, however, that it was revealed everyone would be getting a free cruise aboard Virgin Voyage’s newest ship, Resilient Lady, courtesy of Branson.
The flight from Atlanta to San Juan was chosen because Puerto Rico will be the home port for Resilient Lady.
Delta’s connection with Sir Richard Branson and Virgin is through its 49% stake in Virgin Atlantic which is still majority owned by the British entrepreneur. Delta doesn’t, however, have a direct stake in Virgin Voyages.
In fact, Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Group only owns 20% of Virgin Voyages as part of a branded venture capital deal in which the cruise line gets to use the Virgin brand name in return for a minority investment.
