A month before its takes flight from Denver International Airport, Virgin America announced that it will open a customer contact center in Aurora.

The call center will employ 100 people and open March 15, the same day the airline starts flying between Denver and San Francisco.

Virgin also plans to hire about 40 workers at DIA to handle ticketing and check-in, baggage services, customer assistance and other duties.

“As an airline known for our industry-leading guest service, we’re pleased to be growing a critical part of our business in the region,” Virgin America president and CEO David Cush said in a statement Wednesday.

The contact center is Virgin’s second. The other is in Dallas, which is one of the airline’s hub cities. Employees will assist customers with flight bookings and other services. To staff the center, Virgin is partnering with 24-7 Intouch, a global contact center outsourcing firm whose U.S. headquarters are in Aurora.

“When we enter a new market, we believe it’s important to invest in the region and show travelers that we’re good community partners,” Virgin spokesman Dave Arnold said in an e-mail. “We think Denver in particular is going to be a great market for us — and an important one.”

He cited the region’s reputation as a growing hub for startup and tech companies and said Denver is the most-requested destination by Virgin’s high-tech corporate customers.

“We’ve built a loyal following in Silicon Valley with our tech-forward amenities,” Arnold said. “We think our unique product and service will resonate (in Denver).”

Virgin will operate from concourse A at DIA. Flights will depart Denver at 12:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. daily, with a third flight at 7 a.m. every day except Sunday. Prices start at $129 for coach seats.

Virgin will fly Airbus A320 aircraft with 149 seats. The ticket counter will be on the east side of the main terminal.

DIA says about 860,000 people fly between Denver and San Francisco each year.

Virgin also announced Wednesday that Denver Mayor Michael Hancock and Sir Richard Branson, whose Virgin Group holds a minority share in the airline, will be aboard the inaugural flight from San Francisco to Denver.

While in the air, Branson and Hancock will participate in a live-stream chat, along with 10 entrepreneurs from the Virgin Media Accelerator, which partners with Boulder-based Techstars.

Jennifer Campbelll-Hicks: 303-954-1903, jhicks@denverpost.com or @JenniferCHicks