LONDON -- Talking about safety is generally taboo in airline advertising, but Virgin Atlantic Airways is breaking that rule.

In a print campaign running in the United Kingdom and being rolled out in the U.S. next year, Virgin Chairman Sir Richard Branson explains to travelers -- via an open letter -- what the airline is doing to ensure passenger safety and security.

The ad, which essentially copies a letter sent out in the mail to Virgin frequent flyer members, says that the airline has one of the youngest fleets in the world and only flies planes with four engines -- as opposed to two -- on intercontinental routes. "This cost us more than other airlines, but we know from talking to passengers that it increases their confidence," the letter says.

It adds that Virgin is fitting reinforced, bullet-proof doors and closed-circuit television to protect the cockpit and flight deck, and that it X-rays all carry-on and checked-in luggage. The seven-paragraph correspondence ends by saying that Virgin is "proud to have a safety record which rivals any airline in the world."

With rare exceptions, the airline industry has frowned on advertising keyed to safety, arguing that such ads can damage consumer confidence in the entire sector. Technical issues, such as the number of engines on a plane, are especially controversial. Two years ago, Airbus briefly ran some ads suggesting enhanced safety for its four-engine jetliners compared with Boeing's two-engine models, particularly on long over-water routes. Airbus's language angered many in the industry, and the European plane maker pulled the ads.

Yet some aviation experts say that given the U.S. attacks on Sept. 11, and this month's American Airlines crash in New York, the time is ripe for airlines to shed their usual reticence about safety-related ads. "Branson has identified the obvious -- what the public wants to know," says Keith McMullan, managing director of Aviation Economics. "Justified or not, in today's environment there are certain perceptions about safety out there. I think the campaign will be extremely effective."

http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/...5347815440.htm