Virgin Australia’s Boeing 777-300ER service to Los Angeles was a victim of the airline’s voluntary administration. When the US-based Bain Capital purchased the airline, it axed the unprofitable service and three of the airline’s 777s were taken up by Qatar.

The Virgin Australia flights to Doha will operate on the same model aircraft and while being “operated” by Virgin Australia, the flights will be on Qatar aircraft with airline’s cockpit and cabin crews onboard.

This arrangement is called a “wet lease” – under which one airline, in this case Virgin, pays another, being Qatar, to run their flights for them.

Virgin Australia chief executive Jayne Hrdlicka says: “This is a huge win for Australian travellers which brings more value and choice for passengers wanting to fly internationally. Through this partnership Virgin Australia becomes stronger, improving our ability to compete domestically – which is great news for Virgin Australia, our people and consumers.

“For Virgin Australia this gives us the ability to start long haul flying, which we have not been able to do over the past four and a half years. Our 28 new weekly services to Doha will open up a world of opportunity for those wanting to travel overseas, with more passengers able to connect to over 100 destinations around the world on Qatar’s network.

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“This also creates the potential for more jobs and promotional opportunities for our Virgin Australia team as we increase domestic flying to accommodate passengers connecting from an expanded international network.

“This partnership is a critical piece in Virgin Australia’s long-term strategy and a huge vote of confidence in Australian aviation, further strengthening Virgin Australia’s long-term competitiveness and growth of the aviation industry in Australia.”

See virginaustralia.com

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