Virgin Blue timing on Pacific route launch questioned

The launch of Virgin Blue’s trans-Pacific route this week could determine the future of the airline’s chief executive, Brett Godfrey, according to a report in the Brisbane Courier Mail.

According to the report, the value of the carrier’s market share is currently A$329 million, but the cost of the new seven Boeing 777s being added to the fleet is at least A$1.5 billion.

The first of the new aircraft will be leased, but the following three deliveries will be backed by US government financing.

Industry observers are questioning how the airline will pay for the remaining planes when carriers around the world are under such intense financial pressure.

One aviation specialist told The Courier-Mail that Godfrey was facing “the brutal reality” of current economic conditions.

“He is coming into the route when Qantas is flooding the Pacific with extra seats on its A380 super jumbos,” the specialist said.

There is also upcoming competition from Delta Air Lines, the largest carrier in the world, which surprised the industry last month with its announcement of a daily Sydney Los Angeles service beginning in July

“The Pacific no longer looks like the gold mine it once was when the Qantas-United Airlines duopoly creamed the profits,” the airline specialist added, suggesting that it might be a good idea for Godfrey to push back the deliveries of the aircraft.

Thanks to www.travelmole.com for the above quotes, for more information on this article please visit their website.

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