Virgin America Meets Portland, Oregon, and ‘Portlandia’
Portlanders, known for their sunny dispositions, smiled that much bigger on the afternoon of June 5, 2012, when Virgin America’s inaugural flight 816 departed from San Francisco International Airport, landing at Portland International Airport.
The hour-and-40-minute flight, with a mix of ticketed passengers, Virgin America’s CEO David Cush, Portland Mayor Sam Adams, actor Kyle MacLachlan of IFC’s “Portlandia,” and members of the media, felt more like a festive event than a typical flight. Contests for prizes utilizing VA’s in-flight gaming system kicked off the entertainment, and “Portlandia,” the popular comedy about Portlanders, aired for the first time on Virgin America Flights. (MacLachlan plays the Portland, Oregon, mayor on the show).
Also on board was a Virgin America promotion in which contestants were asked to put a bird on their favorite photos. Thousands of the airline’s fans sent in photos with birds on them, reflecting a scene from “Portlandia.”
“One of the things we’re really known for is being creative utilizing our on-board entertainment system,” said Abby Lunardini, vice president of corporate communications at Virgin America. “So we wanted to team up with the TV show ‘Portlandia’ for a fun promotion, and we were lucky enough to garner the show’s stars, like Kyle MacLachlan, on board the first flight.”
So why Portland?
“Virgin America has wanted to come into Portland for a long time. Our planes are different, our in-flight entertainment is different. This is a city [known for doing] things differently, and we’re an airline known for shaking up the industry, so we think we’ll be a great fit,” stated Lunardini.
David Zielke, general manager of Portland International Airport, was thrilled and shared, “Virgin America wanted to be in Portland, and as an airport and community, we welcomed them. It’s good for the market; it’s a fresh, new way of doing business; and we think the market will respond. It’s exciting.”
“Virgin America is a company that’s a very Portland-like company, such as more eco-consious and with focus on food, beverage, and entertainment,” said Mayor Adams.
It is also a strategic step to bring more tourism to the Portland area. Bringing Virgin to the city gives big corporations that make Portland home and depend on U.S. and international air connections, like Nike, Daimler Trucks, and Adidas North America, other options. Virgin America will provide additional flights for clients and staff.
How Mayor Adams got involved with “Portlandia” was an interesting turn of events, starting with an invitation for him to play the mayor’s assistant on the show. “They asked me to be on the pitch reel to try and get the network to buy the show. They approached me in a very apologetic manner: ‘It’d be funny if you play the mayor’s assistant,’ the producers said,” explained Adams.
When he inquired who would be playing the mayor and was told Kyle MacLachlan, Adams said, “I’m in.”
Adams, with three seasons under his mayor/actor’s belt, said he hasn’t caught the acting bug and will say goodbye to his character after this season. When asked about his experience working with the show’s fictional mayor, he smiled and shared that he and MacLachlan are “BFFs forever.”
Virgin America’s U.S. expansion into other markets is a win-win for Portland, and “Portlandia” fans will be sure to celebrate new service to Portland, as the series will be featured on the Red Entertainment System fleet-wide.
Virgin America will now offer two flights daily between Portland and Los Angeles and San Francisco. In honor of these new routes, the airline is offering a sale from Portland with fares starting at $94 to SFO and $135 to LAX.
