2009: More on eco-hero Richard Branson's desperate fight against carbon dioxide

Virgin Group Chairman, Sir Richard Branson, said, “Almost ten years ago the Virgin Blue team revolutionised travel in this market,they brought back a sense of fun and flair to flying again and made travel much more accessible thanks to its low fares. It’s a true example of the benefits of competition and the Virgin Blue and V Australia teams who have already done a wonderful job of bringing fares to the USA tumbling downand I have no doubt they will continue to do so.

“This will bring tangible benefits to the tourism industry and to businesses at a time when it is most needed,” he said.

V Australia’s launch flight will operate from Sydney to Los Angeles, with three flights a week from today, ramping up to daily from March 20. The carrier will also launch direct flights between Brisbane and Los Angeles and Melbourne and Los Angeles and recently confirmed it has set its sights on launching its next route from Australia to South Africa.

Feb '07: Branson drinks the Kool-Aid

"We all now know that something radical has got to be done to turn back the tide of global warming," said Branson in a statement. "By launching the $25 million Virgin Earth Challenge, the largest ever science and technology prize to be offered in history, we want to encourage scientists and individuals from around the world to come up with a way of removing lethal carbon dioxide from the earth's atmosphere. By competing for this prize they will follow in the footsteps of many of history's greatest inventors and innovators. But in this case potentially save the planet."