Virgin Atlantic a result of a High Court action, this additional payment was received shortly before Fields' death in 1997. On 22 June 1984, Virgin Atlantic operated its inaugural scheduled service, flown between Gatwick and Newark using a leased Boeing 747-200 (registration ), christened "Maiden Voyager", which had been formerly operated by Aerolíneas Argentinas. From the onset, its activities were augmented by leveraging existing Virgin Group resources, such as tickets being sold at Virgin Megastores record shops. Part of Richard Branson's declared approach to business is to either succeed within the first year or exit the market; this ethos includes a one-year
Ithaca Tompkins Regional Airport resumed service between Ithaca and Newark Liberty International Airport with four daily flights. In 2011, the airport served 242,493 passengers on three airlines. In 2009 Regional Elite Airline Services took over ground handling duties from Mesaba Airlines for the Delta Connection flights to Detroit. As of November 2012, all ground handling for Delta and United Airlines will be by DAL Global Services. Starting on March 24, 2012, US Airways Express ended all service between Ithaca and New York–LaGuardia as part of a slot-exchange deal with Delta. The 2013 Federal sequester did not result in the closure of the airport's control