The commission will now look for “early signs of damage” that could “damage a competitor or drive them off route”.

The jump meant the carrier is now by far the biggest in terms of passengers carried – with previous number one Qantas slumping from 17.9 per cent to just 2.9 per cent.

The news comes a week before the third deadline to decide the winning bidder for Virgin, which has already been whittled down to two parties: Bain Capital and Cyrus Capital Partners.

British business magnate and Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson has declined to comment on which of two remaining bidders his company prefers, according to a reports. “As the founder shareholder and licensor of the Virgin brand, Virgin Group will continue to engage with the administrator, bidders and management team in bringing Virgin Australia out