Virgin Atlantic, BA Sending Relief Flights

He's the golden boy of aviation, the man who's reportedly ready to bid on the entire fleet of supersonic Concordes. Now, Virgin Atlantic Airlines CEO, Sir Richard Branson, is a humanitarian.

Branson hopes to send a 747 with medical supplies and some 200 volunteers to the war-torn Iraqi capitol sometime next week. ""The health care system has collapsed in Baghdad. Things are pretty desperate," Branson told the New York Daily News. "We've already signed up 200 people to go, and it was just [Friday] we put the request for volunteers on our web site."

The Business Angle

Ahh, but there's more to the story than Branson's humanitarianism. Virgin Atlantic and British Airways are locked in a heated race to restart commercial air service to what was once Saddam International Airport in Baghdad. "In the long-term Baghdad needs two principle things: to get the oil flowing and to get scheduled flights," Branson told the Daily News.

Branson's competition, however, may have an edge. The British newspaper, Guardian, reports London's flag carrier wants to reactivate a long-forgotten treaty between the UK and Iraq, allowing BA to conduct scheduled flights in and out of Baghdad. Like Virgin Atlantic, BA hopes to start relief flights to Baghdad as soon as the airport facilities, heavily damaged in the war, are repaired. Last week, the American engineering and construction firm Bechtel received a US government contract worth up to $680 million over 18 months to restore the airport facilities, as well as power and water plants in Iraq.

Branson doesn't expect to make money on a London-Baghdad route for at least two years. The Daily News reports he's willing to spend up to $20 million in the meantime, establishing service and promoting it around the world. BA executives refused comment.

FMI: www.virgin-atlantic.com, www.british-airways.com