Virgin Australia will temporarily suspend flying to Abu Dhabi from February and rely on alliance partner Etihad Airways as the Australian carrier’s long-haul fleet undergoes heavy maintenance checks.
In the short time V Australia has been offering services to Abu Dhabi, the passenger numbers have not been good.
In the BITRE statistics on international flights between Australia and the rest of the world in the year to June 30, V Australia 777-300ERs averaged load factors of just 55.6% (or 41.2% inbound and 70% outbound).
However alliance partner Etihad’s flights to and from Australia, in A346s and A345s, averaged 79.95% seat occupancy by paying passengers.
Four of Virgin’s five Boeing 777 wide-body aircraft will undergo checks of up to two weeks each, leaving it short of capacity on the Abu Dhabi flights, part of its 18-month old alliance with the Middle Eastern carrier.
An agreement between the two airlines is expected to see Etihad cover Virgin’s Middle East flights for up to two months with its own 777 aircraft, doubling its own flights between Sydney and Abu Dhabi to twice daily.
Virgin will continue scheduled flights to Los Angeles, rotating aircraft into heavy maintenance and then back into service through the two-month period.
