Virgin Blue is reportedly close to signing a major sale with Boeing which will include Boeing 777-200LRs for V Australia to launch direct Perth-London Gatwick services from 2011. Australian Aviation contributor Geoffrey Thomas reports in The West Australian newspaper that the order for six 777-200LRs is part of a wider order for 70 aircraft being
V Australia will commence daily services on the Sydney-Nadi route from December 18, while it has also announced plans to cut its frequency on the Sydney-Los Angeles route from February next year. The airline launched sales on the services on November 5, with fares starting from from $199 one way for economy, $469 in premium
Data released by Qantas and Virgin Blue to the Australian Securities Exchange shows that both airlines recorded overall higher load factors during September, compared to the same time last year. Collectively, the Qantas Group saw a 6.6 per cent increase in passengers, which lifted RPKs by 2.7 per cent, while load factor was 3.9 percentage
The ACCC issued a draft determination on November 2 to allow Delta Air Lines and Virgin Blue to operate their proposed joint venture on trans-Pacific routes. “The ACCC considers that the joint venture is likely to assist Virgin Blue and Delta to compete more effectively against the incumbents on the routes, Qantas and United Airlines,”
Qantas has expressed its disappointment in the IASC’s decision to only award it four weekly services on the Fiji route, claiming that the allocation would not allow its services to be viable. The airline, which filed in competition with V Australia for capacity to Fiji, says in its response to the IASC’s draft determination that
Virgin Blue CEO Brett Godfrey will give a speech entitled “Managing through the toughest aviation period since the declaration of WW2” on November 19 for the Queensland Media Club. The speech will be hosted at the Presidential Ballroom in The Sebel and Citigate King George Square in Brisbane from 12pm-2:30pm. This content is available exclusively