John Borghetti, the new boss of Virgin Blue, has moved to take matters to his hands in trying to shift around the fate of its loss-making subsidiary, V Australia.
In the first move of an overarching reorganization, V Australia will be taken back under the direct wing of its parent company, after operating separately since it started its US services in the previous year.
The long-haul subsidiary is a great challenge for Mr Borghetti in his starting year of leadership because of the taut competition it tackles from United, Qantas, and Delta Air Lines on the route from Australia to US. V Australia’s operational and cabin crews have also been working separately from Virgin Blue’s.
Mr. Borghetti also disclosed to the staff yesterday in Brisbane his new management group. The executives who answer directly to him are increased from six to eight.
Andrew David, COO of Virgin Blue, has announced that he is about to leave the company by this year’s end. A former executive of Air New Zealand, Mr. David lost to Mr Borghetti in getting the top spot in Virgin.
Scott Swift, general manager of V Australia, does not have definite role as of now, but he will answer directly to Mr. David as V Australia is brought under its parent’s wing.
As posted earlier in the week, Virgin has acquired two of Qantas’s executives, Jane McKeon and Will Owens. Ms. McKeon is to become chief of government relations, while Mr. Owens will be in charge of yield management.
Arguably, Liz Savage takes home the bacon from this reshuffle. Ms. Savage, a former executive of easyJet, will be in charge of revenue and network management. Her group is tasked to review Virgin Blue’s whole domestic and international networks, which is projected for completion this coming August.
Keith Neate retains his position as chief financial officer. Richard Tanner also remains as chief of human resources.