Virgin Australia

Captain Adam Barr has been flying our aircraft proudly for more than 23 years while balancing his role with raising two sons, Ethan and Lachlan. Now aged 27 and 29, the brothers have followed in their father’s footsteps, both pursuing careers as pilots with Virgin Australia. Ethan recently completed his final training requirements with his brother and father proudly overseeing his last flight to earn a First Officer command. "It's been easier training them to fly an aeroplane than it was teaching them how to drive a car," laughed Adam. #VirginAustralia

#FlashbackFriday: This week marks Virgin Australia's 24th year flying across the Australian skies. Commencing operations as Virgin Blue, the company found itself to be a major player in the Australian market after the collapse of Ansett Australia in 2001. Since then, the company rebranded and has grown to become the Virgin Australia we know today. Happy birthday VA! #aviaiton #safety #virginaustralia #casa

We are thrilled to celebrate pilot Ben Arnott, who received his Captain command on the rooftop of our Brisbane Head Office today. With over 14 years and 12,000 hours of dedicated flying service with Virgin Australia, Ben has established himself as a highly experienced and respected member of our wonderful team. Ben is one of the many Virgin Australia pilots who receive command upgrades each year and is set to lead his first flight as a Captain on an Adelaide-Melbourne service early next month. Congratulations from the Virgin Australia family! Picture: Base Manager, Andy Bauer and Captain Ben Arnott, during the Royal Australian Air Force Riverfire rehearsal. #VirginAustralia

It's been 12 months since we announced a joint MoU with Boeing to amplify and accelerate sustainability initiatives for our organisations.   In our first year, our work together has focused on progressing Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), workforce development and inclusion, and the Australia-US bilateral clean energy cooperation.   While there's much to be done as we move towards a more sustainable industry, we remain laser focused on the important work ahead.   More information is available in our first joint annual report: https://lnkd.in/gnWHvPc5   #VirginAustralia #Boeing  

We are rekindling an old flame. Our partnership with Air New Zealand is set to be reignited following authorisation of a new trans-Tasman codeshare agreement by Australian and New Zealand regulators. It will give our customers a comprehensive trans-Tasman network and access to greater value, choice and loyalty rewards when they are travelling to New Zealand. We look forward to our partnership with Air New Zealand taking off later this year. More here: https://lnkd.in/geeteM6v #VirginAustralia #AirNewZealand

Today we announced the acquisition of eight new Embraer E190-E2 aircraft in a significant investment that will secure the future growth of our WA-based regional business, Virgin Australia Regional Airlines (VARA). The addition of the E190-E2 gives us a long-term solution for our Western Australia charter market operations as we retire the long serving F100 fleet. These new aircraft will improve reliability, performance and customer comfort when they enter the VARA fleet from October 2025. Today’s announcement is part of a group-wide fleet growth and renewal program that includes the acquisition of new Boeing 737 MAX-8 aircraft and the refurbishment of our existing 737 fleet. More here: https://lnkd.in/gNMaaxta #VirginAustralia #Embraer 

Last weekend, in partnership with Adelaide Airport Limited, we launched an important initiative for guests travelling with disabilities or those needing additional support when flying. The inaugural ‘Try Before You Fly’ initiative gave participants the opportunity to familiarise themselves with each component of air travel - from arriving at check-in to preparing for take-off and landing. The program aims to open a world of possibilities for guests who might ordinarily feel uncomfortable travelling, giving them confidence and reassurance before they embark on their next travel journey. Thank you to the team at Adelaide Airport, our volunteers and crew who made Try Before You Fly a wonderful success. More on Virgin Australia's accessibility services here: https://lnkd.in/gUSzYp94 #VirginAustralia

We have received close to 30,000 rebooking requests since Rex announced last night that it had entered voluntary administration and immediately suspended its 737 jet operations. We mobilised more than 200 additional Guest Contact Centre agents overnight and today to assist impacted Rex customers with immediate travel plans. Call centre wait times are currently 15 minutes on average – please only call if your impacted Rex flight has been cancelled and you were booked to fly in the next 48 hours. For bookings outside the next 48 hours, please submit a request on the Virgin Australia website here: https://lnkd.in/gqCxXgXq So far, approximately 3,000 guests have been rebooked, and our team is working quickly to validate requests that have been submitted, with priority being given to people travelling soon. We appreciate the patience and understanding of impacted Rex customers and thank our team for their ongoing efforts to support Australian travellers.

This is a difficult moment for Australian aviation with Rex entering voluntary administration and announcing the immediate suspension of its 737 jet operations. It is also a reminder of the challenging nature of our industry. Our team is now moving quickly to support Rex’s customers and people.   Impacted Rex customers will be supported with rebooking on an equivalent Virgin Australia service free of charge. Customers will need to contact Virgin Australia before 14 August 2024 to take up this offer.  Rex customers with imminent travel in the next 48 hours should contact the Virgin Australia Guest Contact Centre on 13 67 89. Those travelling outside 48 hours should visit the Virgin Australia website to complete a rebooking form. We are also offering support to Rex employees who may be impacted by today’s announcement. People whose employment has been affected should visit the expression of interest form on our website to apply for open positions. Due to expected delays in Virgin Australia’s order deliveries for new 737 MAX-8s, Virgin Australia is in the process of securing leases for three of the 737-800 aircraft Rex will no longer operate. These aircraft will be used to support Virgin Australia’s existing published schedules. It will also provide us with capacity to respond if market growth accelerates faster than currently anticipated. Securing these three aircraft will have the additional benefit of enabling Virgin Australia to hire more Cabin Crew and Pilots, creating jobs that will be made available for impacted Rex employees.  We are thinking of our colleagues at Rex today and we are committed to supporting Australian travellers who are impacted by this announcement.  More here: https://lnkd.in/g6gtEzhk