Virgin Australia enters voluntary administration

V AUSTRALIA B777-3ZG VH-VPD (CN 37938)

With the collapse of Ansett Australia in September 2001 still edged deeply in our memory it is with heartache that another major Australian airline has entered into voluntary administration.
Today Virgin Australia confirmed it has entered voluntary administration - making it Australia's first big corporate casualty of the coronavirus pandemic. Consultancy firm Deloitte has been appointed as the administrator, after the airline was unable to secure a 1.4 billion Australian dollar loan from the federal government. The country's second-largest carrier cut almost all flights last month following wide-spread travel bans. It was already struggling with a long-term A$5bn debt. The airline is now seeking new buyers and investors, after failing to get a loan from Australia's government. Virgin Australia chief executive Paul Scurrah said: "Our decision today is about securing the future of the Virgin Australia Group and emerging on the other side of the Covid-19 crisis.

VIRGIN AUSTRALIA B777-3ZG VH-VOZ (CN 35302)

"Australia needs a second airline and we are determined to keep flying."

The Australian Government refused a request from the company for a A$1.4bn loan, but in the past month had announced around A$900m in support for all local airlines. Virgin Australia has turned just two statutory profits in the past decade. It is part-owned by a number of entities including the Etihad 21%, Singapore Airlines 20%, China's HNA 20%, Nanshan Group 20%, Sir Richard Branson's Group 10% and Free Float 9%.
Virgin Australia employs about 10,000 people directly and another 6,000 through ancillary businesses.

VIRGIN BLUE B737-8FE VH-VUB (CN 34013)

Virgin  Australia commenced services on the 31st August 2000 as Virgin Blue, with two aircraft on a single route. It suddenly found itself as a major airline in Australia's domestic market after the collapse of Ansett Australia in September 2001. The airline has since grown to directly serve 42 cities in Australia, from hubs in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney.

Meanwhile, Sir Richard Branson - whose Virgin group is a part-owner of Virgin Australia - has offered a Caribbean island as collateral to help get a UK government bailout of Virgin Atlantic.
Shares had been suspended in the firm for the past fortnight as it struggled to find a survival plan.

                  VIRGIN AUSTRALIA B737-8FE VH-VUJ (CN 34443)

Virgin Australia's loyalty program Velocity has closed down its website for now but we are informed it is for only a short time and my points and the 10 million other members points are safe.