[9] On 26 June 2020, it was announced that Bain Capital had entered into a sale and implementation deed with administrator Deloitte to acquire Virgin Australia.

[12][13] Initially offering seven return flights a day between Brisbane and Sydney, this was expanded to cover all major Australian cities and many holiday destinations.

The Virgin Blue name was the result of an open competition; it was a play on the predominantly red livery and the Australian slang tradition of calling a red-headed male 'Blue' or 'Bluey'.

[14] The timing of Virgin Blue's entry into the Australian market was fortunate as it was able to fill the vacuum created by the failure of Ansett Australia in September 2001.

Ansett's failure allowed Virgin to grow rapidly to become Australia's second domestic carrier rather than staying just a cut-price alternative to the established players.

[citation needed] As the airline grew, it acquired new equipment, enabling it to phase out its older 737-400s in favor of 737-700 and −800 series aircraft with modern glass cockpits, winglets, and greater fuel efficiency.

[21] In December 2010, Virgin Blue entered into alliances with Etihad Airways[22] and Air New Zealand[23] for code-sharing, reciprocal lounge and frequent flyer access and other co-operational projects.

[30] V Australia also applied to the United States Department of Transportation to operate services to San Francisco, Seattle, Las Vegas, and New York, but these plans never materialised.

[34] In February 2011, the re-brand was confirmed when the airline announced that the word 'Blue' would be dropped from its name as part of a campaign to attract more business travellers away from rival Qantas.

The airline said its bailout proposal was "subject to approval by the Virgin Australia Holdings board and the Australian Government" and "may or may not include conversion to equity in certain circumstances."

[54] On 16 April 2020, the Federal Government announced it would spend $160 million subsidising a minimum number of services operated by Virgin Australia and Qantas.

[57] On 21 April 2020, Virgin Australia confirmed it had gone into voluntary administration, citing its inability to continue operations without a Federal Government bailout.

[63] On 15 October 2020, as a result of numerous restructuring measures by Bain Capital, Virgin Australia CEO Paul Scurrah announced that he would resign.

[65] In September 2023, it was reported that Virgin Australia had been affected by the false-certification scandal plaguing London-based AOG Technics, with two Boeing 737-800s temporarily put out of service after the airline became aware that the engines had been fitted with unauthorised parts.

In March 2025, Virgin Australia announced that incumbent Chief Commercial Officer Dave Emerson, would replace Hrdlicka as CEO.

[76][77] The building, with about 13,220 square metres (142,300 sq ft) A-Grade office space, was triple net leased to Virgin Blue.

[78] As the airline started operations, it decided to place its head office in the Brisbane area (initially as Virgin Blue, at 112 Barry Parade in Fortitude Valley).

In November 2010, the Australian Football League (AFL) decided not to renew its marketing contract with Qantas, instead choosing Virgin Blue for a deal worth A$5–8 million.

[91] Virgin Australia became a sponsor of the newest AFL clubs, the Gold Coast Suns and Greater Western Sydney Giants, in 2011 and 2014 respectively.

[97] On 11 December 2024, Qatar Airways announced that passengers can begin booking air tickets for direct routes to Doha from Sydney, Brisbane and Perth on behalf of Virgin Australia for travels commencing June 2025 onwards.

In order to conserve capital, Virgin Australia has started accepting second hand aircraft into their fleet, like the Boeing 737-700s from KLM to replace the ageing Fokker 100s.

[128] On 23 February, it was announced that the aircraft would be ATR 72s, to enter service beginning in May 2011; they would allow Virgin Australia to both replace its fleet of Embraer 170s and introduce new regional routes.

[140] This announcement was made in conjunction with efforts to replace the older Fokker 100 craft in the Virgin Australian Regional Airlines fleet.

[116][143] Virgin Australia Cargo was launched in July 2015 after the airline's contract to carry freight on behalf of Toll expired and was not renewed.

The airline signed a five-year carriage contract with TNT in 2016 and operations of dedicated freighter aircraft commenced on 4 July the same year.

[citation needed] Virgin Australia offers business class passengers a full three-course meal prepared on board by the crew.

[150] The business class food menu is accompanied by a premium range of Australian wines, beers and spirits and non-alcoholic beverages, including barista-style coffee.

[150] In Economy Class, the airline offers a buy on board food and drink service and serves complimentary non-alcoholic beverages to all passengers on all domestic and short haul international Virgin Australia flights.

In December 2012, Virgin Australia introduced an in-flight Wi-Fi system to provide music, movies and TV shows to tablets, smartphones, laptops and similar devices.

Upgraded facilities provided included buffet food and refreshments, newspapers, showers, computers, and WiFi internet access for travellers.