Qatar Airways has agreed to buy a 25% stake in Virgin Australia from owner Bain Capital for an undisclosed sum.
If the investment meets approval from Australian regulators, it will deepen the partnership between the two airlines, who have been code-sharing since 2022. It will also set the stage for Virgin Australia to resume long-haul flights for the first time in mid-2025. After reorganizing during the pandemic and being acquired by Bain in 2020.
Virgin Australia will launch flights from Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney to Doha, opening more than 100 new connecting itineraries across Europe, the Middle East and Africa for Australian travellers. It was revealed.
Virgin Australia owns a full fleet of narrow-body aircraft but will lease Qatar Airways wide-body aircraft staffed by Qatari crews.
Virgin Australia entered Australia’s version of bankruptcy early in the Covid-19 pandemic, entering the crisis weakened by years of losses. Under Bain, profitability was achieved by operating only domestic and short-distance international routes.
Virgin Australia Group is Australia’s second largest airline after Qantas Group.
