Virgin Australia CEO Jayne Hrdlicka steps down after nearly four years in top role

Jayne Hrdlicka, who has resigned, guided Virgin Australia through a challenging period in the aftermath of its acquisition by Bain Capital out of administration. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP

Virgin Australia’s chief executive, Jayne Hrdlicka, has abruptly stepped down after almost four years in charge, raising questions about the timing of the airline’s much-hyped relisting on the stock exchange.

On Tuesday, the airline announced that Hrdlicka had the support of the Virgin Australia board in deciding to “the time was right” to move on. She will stay on as chief executive while a global search for her replacement begins.

Her departure comes at a critical time for Virgin Australia. The airline’s owners will push ahead with a much-anticipated initial public offering to relist on the Australian stock exchange this year, after earlier plans to do it in 2023 were aborted.

The American-born boss guided the airline through a challenging period, taking on the role in 2020 after the airline was acquired by private equity firm Bain Capital out of administration during the pandemic after the Morrison government refused to bail it out.

In October, the airline posted a $129m net profit for the 2022-23 financial year, the airline’s first in 11 years.

Virgin’s pandemic-induced restructure saw the carrier pivot away from the full service premium end of the market to become a self-described “value carrier” and ditch its budget carrier, Tigerair.

Virgin Australia also significantly wound back its international operations, now flying to just a handful of short-haul foreign destinations as its current fleet of Boeing 737 family aircraft was incapable of competing with Qantas on long haul routes.

Hrdlicka helmed Virgin through a tumultuous period for Australian aviation, when airlines’ on-time performance, staffing levels and baggage handling operations struggled to keep up with a spike in travel demand after the reopening of domestic borders.

While Virgin Australia remains a key part of the aviation duopoly that is blamed for stubbornly high air fares, Hrdlicka lobbied the Albanese government to grant extra flight permissions to Qatar Airways – a partner of Virgin’s – so it could better compete with Qantas’ domination, as questions about the latter’s influence dominated the political landscape in 2023.

Hrdlicka, who was formerly an executive at Qantas Group and is also the chair of Tennis Australia, notably took a short period of leave in 2023 after her husband’s death from cancer.

Virgin’s 7,500 staff were informed of Hrdlicka’s departure on Tuesday.

“I have decided the time is right for me to signal CEO transition for this great airline and ultimately to pass the baton on,” Hrdlicka said. This is not a decision I have taken lightly, but the last four years have been heavy lifting across the organisation during the toughest of times.”

“We are in the midst of the next phase of our transformation program and there is a lot to do and an IPO [initial public offering] to deliver. The next phase of this journey is another 3-5 years, making now the perfect juncture to begin the process of leadership transition to deliver the next few chapters of what I’m sure will be a significant long-term success story,” she said.

Hrdlicka said she was “very proud of what the Virgin Australia team have accomplished together since the depths of administration”.

“I am honoured to have been given the opportunity to guide the team to this point on its journey, and I very much look forward to seeing the continued success of Virgin Australia,” she said.

Virgin Australia chairman, Ryan Cotton, said Hrdlicka had led the airline “through the most turbulent times of its 20-plus-year history” and laid “a strong foundation for continued growth”.

“To do this required a lot of heavy lifting and the rebuild of many parts of our organisation. A big part of this was resetting our talent pipeline for the long term, which serves us very well now,” Cotton said.

“The board and I respect Jayne’s decision,” Cotton said.

The Transport Workers Union, whose members include cabin crew, ground handlers and pilots at Virgin, called for commitments made under Hrdlicka’s term to be respected by her successor.

TWU national secretary, Michael Kaine, praised Virgin’s approach to employing workers directly “in stark contrast” to Qantas’s recent history of outsourcing certain roles.

“The decision to answer workers’ call with more insourced airport jobs in stark contrast to Qantas’ destructive model of fragmentation was, in our view, one of the best leadership decisions made by Hrdlicka and her team. It showed that listening to workers’ ideas on the best way forward for the airline is a valuable attribute for the CEO of Virgin Australia,” Kaine said.