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Airline Weekly

Delivering the strongest business insights in the world of commercial aviation.

Tag: Virgin Australia

Airline Weekly Lounge Episode 105: Satisfaction in Sydney

September 12, 2018

Qantas continues to romp. In the first half of 2018, the flying kangaroo posted a 9% profit margin—one point better than in the same period last year. And with that, Qantas is working on its fourth consecutive calendar year with double-digit margins. Despite more exposure to rising fuel prices, Air New Zealand still mostly kept […]

Airline Weekly Lounge Episode 92: Kiwis and Kangaroos

March 6, 2018

Life is good in Australasia—especially if you’re Qantas or Air New Zealand. Both carriers are enjoying a bit of a golden age that stems from good management and some macro tailwinds. Meanwhile, Virgin Australia, seemingly unable to catch those tailwinds, drifted toward a disheartening 2% operating profit margin in 2017. Scandinavia’s SAS, meanwhile, had a […]

Borghetti Gets Sweaty: With earnings still weak, Virgin Australia’s CEO again seeks help from foreign airlines

July 12, 2016

Virgins don’t survive on their own. That’s the lesson drawn from Virgin Atlantic’s partial sale to Delta, Virgin America’s all-out sale to Alaska and a much earlier transaction between Belgium’s Virgin Express and what today is Brussels Airlines. The most striking example of all, however, is the case of Virgin Australia. Once independent, strong and […]

Airline Weekly Lounge Episode 47: Turkish Troubles

July 5, 2016

Turkish Airlines and its cross-town rival Pegasus were seeing trouble in their business before the attack on Istanbul’s Ataturk International Airport. In this episode we try to assess—or at least speculate—how the attack will further hurt the two airlines’ prospects. Also, could Turkish’s business model, which relies heavily on sixth-freedom traffic, be especially vulnerable here? […]

Airline Weekly Lounge – Episode 30: The Boomerang Effect

March 8, 2016

After hitting the floor in 2013, Qantas, has—like a boomerang—come all the way back and more. In fact, the Australian carrier set an annual profit record in 2015. Despite enjoying the same advantages inherent to the Land of Oz right now, Virgin Australia has not found the same level of fortune. But in terms of […]

Airline Weekly Lounge – Episode 4: The Wild, Wild East

August 12, 2015

The creditors of bankrupt Skymark Airlines chose All Nippon Airways (ANA) as its equity partner going forward. This of course leaves Delta—again!—without a dance partner in Asia. With that news, we take the opportunity to consider the condition of Japan’s long-time duopoly. What does this mean for Japan Airlines (JAL) and Delta’s Asia business? Virgin […]

Qantastative Easing: Why are Qantas shares surging? Because overnight, the airline has gone from gloom to boom

May 18, 2015

Qantastative Easing: Why are Qantas shares surging? Because overnight, the airline has gone from gloom to boom

Few amusement parks can match the thrill of investing in Qantas. This time last year, the airline’s shares were down by nearly a quarter y/y. Then came spring in the southern hemisphere, when they began a sharp ascent after CEO Alan Joyce declared: “We have now come through the worst.” Another encouraging set of financial […]

Thunder Down Under: Qantas and Virgin Australia are mired in losses while Air New Zealand prospers

September 1, 2014

Thunder Down Under: Qantas and Virgin Australia are mired in losses while Air New Zealand prospers

It was supposed to be the low point before a turnaround. On Aug. 23, 2012, Qantas announced a heavy net loss for its fiscal year that ended in June, no surprise given labor unrest that led to a temporary grounding of the airline. Qantas also blamed the strong Australian dollar, which it said was making […]

On the Virg of Crisis: Virgin Australia runs into trouble as a multitude of strategic shareholders vie for influence

October 7, 2013

In 2005, the government of struggling Samoa decided its taxpayers had more pressing needs than endless subsidies for state-owned Polynesian Airlines. So Samoa accepted an offer from a promising and profitable Australian low-cost carrier called Virgin Blue, which put up the ideas and money to start a new national airline that could sustain itself. The […]

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AW Quoted In The Media

It’s Time to Let Air France-KLM’s New CEO Take Charge, Skift, Feb. 14

German Airline Sues Passenger For Skipping Last Leg Of Flight, NPR Here & Now, Feb. 13

International Tourism To U.S. Has Slowed Since Trump Took Office, Study Finds, NPR Here & Now, Feb. 6

Wellness at 30,000 Feed: Now Airlines Compete for Your Peace of Mind, Ozy, Feb. 3

Could airport delays speed up the end of government shutdown?, Philadelphia Inquirer, Jan. 19

Here are the 5 ideas being proposed for O'Hare's massive expansion, Chicago Tribune, Jan. 16

'Blue flu': TSA agents are no-show amid shutdown because they 'cannot afford to work for free', Yahoo! Finance, Jan. 16

RSS The Airline Weekly Lounge

  • Airline Weekly Lounge Episode 112: Prediction Affliction January 9, 2019
  • Airline Weekly Lounge Episode 111: Deal. No deal. Deal? December 12, 2018
  • Airline Weekly Lounge Episode 110: A Mess in Mexico November 28, 2018
  • Airline Weekly Lounge Episode 109: Happy at Heathrow November 13, 2018
  • Airline Weekly Lounge Episode 108: Is AA OK? October 31, 2018
  • Airline Weekly Lounge Episode 107: Amazing Race October 17, 2018
  • Airline Weekly Lounge Episode 106: Not So Sunny October 4, 2018
  • Airline Weekly Lounge Episode 105: Satisfaction in Sydney September 12, 2018
  • Airline Weekly Lounge Episode 104: Better—But Not Good August 28, 2018
  • Airline Weekly Lounge Episode 103: Canadian Conundrum August 14, 2018

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