Virgin Australia is working with partner airlines Etihad Airways and Air New Zealand to add more seats in the domestic market.
The airline says the move is to help minimise the impact on the tourism and travel industry heading into the busy holiday season, after Qantas grounded aircraft and cancelled flights due to what it says is a maintenance backlog.
Qantas has been locked in enterprise bargaining negotiations with its ground crew, engineers and pilots, who have all been granted the right by Fair Work Australia to take protected industrial action.
Virgin Australia chief executive John Borghetti says discussions with Etihad and Air NZ to provide extra capacity from November and through the busy December and January holiday season are “well advanced”.
“We will continue to work with all of our alliance partners who are keen to help us support the Australian travelling public and ensure tourism is not affected, both domestically and internationally,” Mr Borghetti said in a statement on Wednesday.
The airline has all available aircraft flying in the skies at the moment.
Any assistance from the Abu Dhabi-based Etihad or New Zealand flag carrier Air NZ was understood to include the option of one or both airlines taking over some of Virgin Australia’s international routes, freeing up aircraft to be used domestically.
Qantas said it has grounded four Boeing 737s and three 767s because ongoing industrial action from the Australian Licenced Engineers Association (ALAEA) has left a backlog of maintenance work.
The national flag carrier said on Tuesday that grounding the seven aircraft meant about 500 flights would be cancelled, or 88,000 fewer seats available for sale, over the next month.
CBA Institutional Equities transport analysts Matt Crowe and Andre Fromyhr said the seven aircraft represented about 4.5 per cent of Qantas mainline capacity – i.e. on aircraft featuring a white kangaroo on a red tail.
“We expect a three-month grounding to reduce group revenue by about 0.5 per cent, or $60 million,” the pair said in a research note.
Virgin, Australia’s number two carrier, had brought forward the entry into service of a Boeing 737-800 a month earlier than planned, representing an extra 3,000 seats each week up to October 30.
And from December 20, the airline is adding a fifth daily return service between Melbourne and Perth.
Virgin gained one cent to 35.5 cents while Qantas added 2.5 cents to $1.485.
