Virgin Australia
Virgin Australia, formerly known as Virgin Blue, is an Australian airline based in Brisbane, Queensland. It is one of two active airlines to use the Virgin brand, as well as the larger by fleet size. It commenced services on 31 August 2000 with two aircraft on a single route, before suddenly emerging as a major airline in Australia's domestic market after the collapse of Ansett Australia in September 2001. With the airline's business model incorporating features of both a low-cost and full-service airline, it has since grown to become Australia’s largest domestic airline by passenger market share, as of December 2024. As of June 2025, the airline serves 33 destinations across Australia with its Boeing 737 fleets, operating from its hubs in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney, as well as from its secondary hubs in Adelaide and Perth.
The airline also operates a limited number of short-haul international flights. Australian law prohibits majority-foreign-owned local airlines, like Virgin Australia, from operating international flights to and from Australia. However, Virgin Australia evades this law by operating international flights through a controversial 'shell corporation' structure, a practice that is not illegal but has been widely criticised across Australia's aviation industry.
The airline's headquarters are based in South Bank, Queensland. It was co-founded by British businessman Richard Branson, and former CEO Brett Godfrey.
In 2011, the airline went through a period of transformation, changing its brand to Virgin Australia. This included the introduction of a new aircraft livery, new uniforms, and new onboard menu options, as well as a business class product, which Virgin Blue did not have. New wide-body aircraft were acquired to compete with Qantas, and business class was rolled out across the Virgin Australia network.
On 21 April 2020, Virgin Australia Holdings went into voluntary administration, due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and financial troubles in the years leading up to the pandemic. On 26 June 2020, it was announced that Bain Capital had entered into a sale and implementation deed with administrator Deloitte to acquire Virgin Australia. Creditors agreed to this proposal on 4 September 2020, with the reorganisation and change of ownership completed on 17 November. The airline announced that as part of its relaunch, it would focus on being a mid-market "hybrid" carrier.
History
Early years as Virgin Blue (2000–2006)
Virgin Australia was launched as Virgin Blue, a low-cost airline, in August 2000, with two Boeing 737-400 aircraft, one of which was leased from then-sister airline Virgin Express. Initially offering seven return flights a day between Brisbane and Sydney, this was expanded to cover all major Australian cities and many holiday destinations. The Virgin Blue name was the result of an open competition; it was a play on the predominantly red livery and the Australian slang tradition of calling a red-headed male 'Blue' or 'Bluey'. This term has been used by the older generation, also known as the boomer generation.The timing of Virgin Blue's entry into the Australian market was fortunate as it was able to fill the vacuum created by the failure of Ansett Australia in September 2001. Ansett's failure allowed Virgin to grow rapidly to become Australia's second domestic carrier rather than staying just a cut-price alternative to the established players. It also gave Virgin access to terminal space, without which growth would have been significantly limited. Delays in negotiating access to the former Ansett terminal at Sydney Airport however, forced Virgin to use its original terminal there—a collection of prefabricated buildings without aerobridges—longer than was needed. The airline's corporate and operations functions were located in its headquarters building at 112 Barry Parade in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane.
As the airline grew, it acquired new equipment, enabling it to phase out its older 737-400s in favor of 737-700 and −800 series aircraft with modern glass cockpits, winglets, and greater fuel efficiency.
Virgin Group's holding in Virgin Australia was later reduced, initially via a sale of a half interest to Australian logistics conglomerate Patrick Corporation, and later by a public float. In early 2005, Patrick launched a hostile takeover for Virgin Blue. Patrick had been unhappy for some time with the company. By the closure of the offer, Patrick held 62% of the company, giving it control. Virgin Group retains a 25% share.
In May 2006, Toll Holdings acquired Patrick and became the majority owner of Virgin Blue. In July 2008, Toll sold its majority holding via a special dividend to hold 1.7% of the company. In June 2013, Air New Zealand owned 23% of the company.
File:Virgin Blue Boeing 737-800 PER Monty-3.jpg|thumb|Boeing 737-800 in the old Virgin Blue red livery at Perth Airport in 2004
Virgin Blue previously used a familiar formula pioneered by airlines such as Southwest Airlines and Ryanair of eliminating costs such as included in-flight meals and printed tickets in favour of selling food on-board and using telephone and internet booking systems. It also cut costs in the past by limiting the number of airports serviced and by operating one type of aircraft, the Boeing 737. This strategy changed with the introduction of a second type into the fleet. The airline ordered 20 Embraer E-jets, in a mix of six E170s and 14 E190s. These were ordered specifically so that the airline could re-enter the Sydney–Canberra market that it abandoned in 2004, and to fly to less populous areas. The first E170 arrived in Australia in September 2007, and by the end of the year, the three on initial order had been delivered. These were placed on limited-frequency services before full-scale operations were launched on 4 February 2008 with services from Sydney to Canberra, Mackay in Queensland, and the New South Wales regional centres of Port Macquarie and Albury, which were promoted with a one-cent fare. The flights to Canberra and the regional centres signified an effort to compete more directly with Qantas and its subsidiary QantasLink operation, which flies to all three cities, and with independent Regional Express Airlines.
Codesharing and network consolidation (2006–2010)
When Virgin Blue launched in 2000, it did not have interline or marketing alliances with other airlines. This changed after the collapse of domestic competitor Ansett Australia, when Virgin Blue began a codeshare agreement with United Airlines, enabling United passengers to connect from the United States to Virgin Blue’s Australian destinations not served by United.In 2006, Virgin Blue began forming partnerships to compete with Qantas. It established frequent flyer agreements with Emirates, Hawaiian Airlines, and Malaysia Airlines. The airline also had an interline agreement with Regional Express Airlines for access to smaller regional centres in eastern Australia, and operated two routes in Western Australia through Virgin Australia Regional Airlines.
In November 2007, Virgin Blue announced an agreement with Garuda Indonesia, allowing domestic passengers to transfer to international Garuda flights from Perth, Melbourne, Sydney, or Darwin. A similar agreement was later made with Vietnam Airlines, providing connections from Melbourne and Sydney to destinations in Vietnam via its network.File:Forward fuselage of Virgin Australia Boeing 737-81D at Sydney Airport.jpg|thumb|Close-up of the new Virgin Australia titles on Boeing 737 Bondi Beach, at Sydney Airport for the launch of the new brand
In 2008, Business class was introduced throughout its entire fleet. New seating was installed in the first three rows of the cabin. These could be converted from three seats in economy configuration to two seats for premium economy. The premium product offered priority check-in, larger baggage allowance, lounge access, priority boarding, increased legroom and all-inclusive in flight entertainment, meals and beverages on board. The product was aimed at business and corporate customers. The airline began charging economy-class passengers for checked baggage in September 2008. The airline further announced its intention to operate Airbus A330 aircraft between Perth and the East Coast, starting in May 2011.
In December 2010, Virgin Blue entered into alliances with Etihad Airways and Air New Zealand for code-sharing, reciprocal lounge and frequent flyer access and other co-operational projects. Virgin Blue also entered into talks with Delta Air Lines about the possibility of joining SkyTeam, one of the top three alliances in the world, as V Australia and Delta sought approval for an agreement between the two airlines to co-operate on trans-Pacific services. The agreement was rejected by the United States Department of Transportation under United States antitrust law. Upon review the agreement was approved by the United States Department of Transportation on 10 June 2011.
On 20 January 2011, Air New Zealand announced it would take a shareholding stake of between 10% and 14.99% in Virgin Blue. Air New Zealand chief executive Rob Fyfe described the investment "as part of Air New Zealand's strategy to develop scale and reach in this region" but said the airline had no intention of making a full takeover.
Launch of V Australia (2008–2011)
In early 2006, Virgin Blue announced its intention to operate up to seven flights a week to the U.S. through either Los Angeles or San Francisco. At the time, only Qantas and United Airlines competed in the Australia-US transpacific market. The airline was given permission for ten flights a week to the U.S. by Australian regulators on 24 July 2007. The plans were approved by US regulators on 15 February 2008, due to the signing of an open skies agreement between Australia and the US. Instead of using its existing brand, Virgin Blue launched a fully owned subsidiary with a separate Air Operator's Certificate, named V Australia as the result of a public naming competition, with a fleet of five specifically branded 777-300ERs.The airline launched flights between Sydney and Los Angeles in 2009, followed by flights from Melbourne and Brisbane after obtaining permission to operate an unlimited number of flights between Australia and the U.S. by the Australian International Air Services Commission. V Australia also applied to the United States Department of Transportation to operate services to San Francisco, Seattle, Las Vegas, and New York, but these plans never materialised. V Australia later launched flights to Nadi International Airport, Phuket and Johannesburg, and Abu Dhabi to consolidate Virgin Blue's codeshare agreement with Etihad Airways.