As Jayne Hrdlicka heads for the departure lounge at Virgin Australia, her successor will need to grapple with an airline that, while profitable, lacks a compelling reason for Australians to love it. Sandwiched between Qantas and its low-cost carrier Jetstar, Hrdlicka has made great strides in simplifying Virgin’s proposition.

But the resulting airline – which only flies short-haul international and domestically in Australia, using a single fleet type and dual-class cabin – is hardly exciting fodder for international airline talent considering their next move. And as fund managers point out, middle-of-the-road is nothing they’re excited about investing in either.