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Richard Branson writes a heartfelt letter after Virgin airline staffers were accused of racism

richard branson
Virgin Group founder Richard Branson.
Gareth Cattermole/Getty
Richard Branson just posted a heartfelt letter on Virgin Group's website about the dangers associated with knee jerk reactions to things posted on social media.

The billionaire tycoon and social media mainstay wrote the letter in reaction to an alleged racist incident that took place on a Virgin Atlantic flight earlier this month.

According to media reports, a Chinese passenger onboard Virgin Atlantic Flight VS250 on March 1 reported being racially abused by a Caucasian male.

According to the Chinese passenger, who refers to herself as Liu Wei, the male passenger reportedly called her an "F-ing Chinese pig" and to "Get the f--k out of here."

Liu then claims that Virgin Atlantic's cabin crew threatened to throw her off the flight instead coming to her aid. 

Miss Liu then posted her account of the incident on Chinese social media platform Weibo. Her post has gone viral resulting in Virgin Atlantic's social media accounts flooded with posts from Chinese users demanding the airline apologize for its behavior. 

Since the airline was in the process of conducting an investigation of the incident, it could not provide a detailed account on social media. This led to further anger from Chinese users who believed the company was discounting their demands.

After concluding the their investigation, Virgin Atlantic issued the following statement concerning the incident.

"We deeply regret the unpleasant experience our customer had on this flight. We have fully investigated this incident by speaking with those involved, fellow customers and the cabin crew present. We understand that there was an altercation between two customers on board the flight, which resulted in both individuals becoming upset and distressed. Upon noticing the argument, our cabin crew did their best to resolve the situation by suggesting that they could relocate the female customer and her male travelling companion following take off, and the passenger later relocated of her own accord. We would like to reiterate that Virgin Atlantic takes a zero tolerance approach to racism."

Yesterday, Virgin founder Richard Branson weighed in on the incident with an apologetic tweet posted in both Chinese and English. That was followed up with today's letter.

"The superfast age of social media and hyper-connectivity brings with it an enormous range of benefits," Branson wrote in the letter. "But as social media expands, we also have to be careful about how it is used."

Branson then gave his Airline's account of the incident following an investigation which indicates that a female passenger and a male passenger suffering from Parkinson's disease were involved in an altercation. The crew of the flight from the London to Shanghai dealt with the incident in a responsible manner and the trip continued without incident. 


Unfortunately, the result of the knee jerk internet anger has resulted in airline's staff being abused online. 

"Sometimes the consequences of jumping to conclusions can have a significant impact," Branson wrote. "In this case on crew members who were doing their job and have received an enormous amount of abuse online."

Branson closes the letter by imploring those who are as keen on social media as he is to practice moderation in the way they react to the things they see on the internet.


Click here to read Richard Branson's complete letter.

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