The Virgin Atlantic 747 which touched down at Basra International Airport Friday was also the first British passenger plane to land in Iraq for 13 years. It came hours after U.S. President George W. Bush declared that major hostilities were over in Iraq. Traveling on the plane was the airline's CEO, Richard Branson, who was greeted by dozens of British soldiers as he walked off the plane.
Lets hear it for Branson, a man with flair. Perhaps he could run Iraq?
Branson said the need for humanitarian aid was a priority in Iraq. The plane carried medical equipment, including incubators and defibrillators, as well as drugs for tuberculosis, blood pressure and heart disease, for hospitals in Basra and the southern region. |