T3 site is part of the Informa Markets Division of Informa PLC

This site is operated by a business or businesses owned by Informa PLC and all copyright resides with them. Informa PLC's registered office is 5 Howick Place, London SW1P 1WG. Registered in England and Wales. Number 8860726.

Podcast Streaming Now

HomeNewsAviationVirgin Atlantic fears collapse without govt support

Virgin Atlantic fears collapse without govt support

Virgin Atlantic could be in imminent danger of collapse without government support, founder Richard Branson has warned. In an open letter to staff, the entrepreneur said the coronavirus pandemic had created the most challenging trading environment the carrier had ever faced. Rebutting claims he was seeking “free money”, Branson urged officials to provide the struggling carrier with capital on commercial terms.

Branson said, “Together with the team at Virgin Atlantic, we will do everything we can to keep the airline going – but we will need government support to achieve that in the face of the severe uncertainty surrounding travel today and not knowing how long the planes will be grounded for. This would be in the form of a commercial loan – it wouldn’t be free money and the airline would pay it back. The reality of this unprecedented crisis is that many airlines around the world need government support and many have already received it. Without it there won’t be any competition left and hundreds of thousands more jobs will be lost, along with critical connectivity and huge economic value.”

Virgin Atlantic is owned by the Virgin Group, which holds a 20 per cent stake, Air France-KLM (31 per cent) and Delta Air Lines (49 per cent). The carrier is believed to be seeking £500 million from the UK government, but has seen applications rejected after failing to explore alternative sources of finance.

On the other side of the world, Virgin Australia is also seeking government support. Branson added, “The same is true in Australia, where the brilliant Virgin Australia team is fighting to survive and need support to get through this catastrophic global crisis. We are hopeful that Virgin Australia can emerge stronger than ever, as a more sustainable, financially viable airline. If Virgin Australia disappears, Qantas would effectively have a monopoly of the Australian skies.”

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here
Captcha verification failed!
CAPTCHA user score failed. Please contact us!
RELATED ARTICLES

SOCIAL FOLLOWERS

FansLike
FollowersFollow

GALLERY

slide2
slide3
slide4
slide5
slide6
slide7
slide8
slide9
slide10
slide11
slide12
slide13
slide14
slide15
slide16
slide17
slide18
slide19
slide20
slide21
slide22
slide23
slide24
slide25
slide26
slide27

Upcoming Events

NEWSLETTER

    Appointment