Branson wants to reduce stake in Virgin Atlantic

Virgin Atlantic founder Richard Branson is considering selling down his stake in the airline, The Daily Telegraph reported.

The British entrepreneur, who founded the carrier 27 years ago, is keen to ensure it survives increased competition from larger rivals that are part of global alliances.

"Obviously, Virgin Atlantic has been a bit of a baby to me. We're obviously very attached to the airline but equally I want to be sure she's still around in 50 years' time," he said.

“We realised for the long-term stability of Virgin Atlantic we needed to look at an alliance partner, and whether it is purely an alliance or more than an alliance we're completely undecided. Most of the people we talked to are keen to have Virgin as part of their alliance. My preference would be to keep control of the airline."

Virgin Group has a 51 percent stake in the carrier, with the remaining 49 percent held by Singapore Airlines. Delta Air Lines of the US has been mooted as a potential buyer, the newspaper said, but Branson said that there were a number of interested parties and "we'll see how discussions go".
(Source:www.cargonewsasia.com)