ACCC said Virgin picked up passengers after the collapse of regional carrier Rex in mid-2024. — AFP
SYDNEY: Virgin Australia has overtaken Qantas Airways Ltd to become Australia’s largest and most reliable airline as at the end of last year.
This sends a warning to the marquee carrier and supports a potential return to the stock market. Bain Capital-owned Virgin Australia garnered a domestic market share of 35% as of December.
This had surpassed Qantas’ 34.6%, the competition watchdog said in a report yesterday. It’s the first time Qantas has been pushed from the top spot since early 2022.
Jetstar, the low-cost airline brand owned by Qantas, had 29% of the market.
According to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), Virgin picked up passengers after the collapse of regional carrier Rex in mid-2024.
This was following an ill-fated expansion into capital city routes.
Virgin had the busiest December, typically a time of strong leisure demand in Australia, in the airline’s 24-year history, the regulator said.
Bain postponed plans for an initial public offering of Virgin Australia in 2023, and is yet to announce a replacement for outgoing chief executive officer Jayne Hrdlicka.
The airline has long struggled to make a dent in Qantas’s domestic dominance.
Yesterday’s report also sends a warning to Qantas, attempting to re-establish its reputation as a marquee carrier after a torrid post-Covid period defined by lost luggage and cancelled services.
Virgin scrapped just 0.6% of its flights in December, while Qantas cancelled 2.7%, the highest proportion among the airlines tracked by the watchdog.
The long-term average flight cancellation rate in Australia is 2.2%.
Separately, the ACCC said it plans to approve a proposed alliance between Virgin and Qatar Airways, which will see 28 new weekly return services between Doha and Perth, Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne.
Qatar Airways has agreed to buy 25% of Virgin Australia. “This partnership brings the missing piece to Virgin Australia’s longer-term strategy and is a huge vote of confidence in Australian aviation,” Hrdlicka had said about the deal, according to reports.
“Importantly, it will further strengthen Virgin Australia’s ability to compete over the long term.”
Virgin Australia was one of the most high-profile corporate collapses triggered by the pandemic when it entered administration in 2020, after Canberra and shareholders declined to bail it out. — Bloomberg
