Ogilvy PR Worldwide's Federalist Group is guiding Virgin America through the regulatory thicket.

The proposed San Francisco Bay-based carrier, the brainchild of British entrepreneur Richard Branson, faces opposition from Continental Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and the Air Line Pilots Assn.

They question whether VA will be an American-controlled entity as required by the Dept. of Transportation.

VA has assured the DOT that Americans will own 75 percent of the carrier. It suspects the opposition is more concerned about competition from a hungry upstate. VA says once it is flying, passengers will save $786M per-year in fairs, or $88 per-roundtrip. Those statistics come from a research study the Campbell-Hill Aviation Group. The proposed airline promises a 3,000-member work force in five years.

Wayne Berman, managing director of FG, is on the VA team. He was Assistant Secretary of Commerce in the first Bush White House and a member of the Bush/Cheney Transition Team.

Berman is joined by former legislative directors Stewart Hall (Alabama Republican Senator Richard Shelby) and Drew Maloney (Texas Republican Rep. Ed Bryant) and Julie Dammann (ex-chief of staff to Missouri Republican Senator Kit Bond).