As Alaska Air executives took a victory lap after sealing the deal to buy Virgin America Inc., one thing was clear: The familiar Eskimo on the tail of their planes was there to stay. What's unclear, though, is the fate of the arguably better known Virgin America brand. Globally, Richard Branson’s urbane splash of red has helped sell a diverse array of businesses, from water and wine to mobile phones, health clubs, and even banking services. Does Virgin have a home within an 84-year-old airline that boasts a strong, if regional, brand identity of its own? “We believe it’s driving a big revenue premium for Virgin," Alaska Air CEO Brad Tilden said Monday. "We just want to learn more about it. So, there is a chance that we could use the Virgin America brand in some form down the road.” One reason Alaska Air executives might keep the brand alive, at least for a time, would be if they consider it critical to retaining the carrier's loyalists in California, a huge market and key reason Alaska agreed to pay $2.6b in cash. Combined, the new company will have $7b in annual sales. For Virgin, keeping its flag flying in as many American cities as possible is of foremost concern. <br/>
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Alaska Air's plan to buy Virgin America Inc makes the company a more attractive partner to Asian airlines looking for extra revenue from connecting passengers to flights within the US, industry executives and experts say. Foreign airlines could market Alaska Air's US flights to their customers in Asia and take a commission for those sales - a common airline practice called code-sharing. Travelers from Asia would earn frequent flyer miles under their preferred airline's loyalty program even while traveling on Alaska Air. Alaska Air said its US$2.6b purchase of Virgin America, based in California, gives it 22% of seats on North America flights from the US West Coast, more than any other airline. California was the No.1 US destination for visitors from Asia in 2014, according to US Commerce Department data. "We'll be a very desirable partner for these international airlines," Alaska Air's CEO Brad Tilden said Monday. The company's effort to woo Asian airline code-sharing partners comes as Delta, United Continental and American Airlines are competing more aggressively with Asian airlines for trans-Pacific passengers. Each of the three carriers said in the past month that it intends to add a route to China.<br/>