Virgin Australia has named Dave Emerson as its new chief executive, drawing to end a period of speculation for the airline’s leadership.
The selection of Emerson, currently Virgin’s chief commercial officer, comes after a lengthy external search, closely scrutinised by aviation unions.
Virgin Australia’s Dave Emerson.
Emerson will begin his transition to the chief executive role “immediately” and formally takes over on March 14.
Virgin Australia chairman Ryan Cotton said that after a global search, it was clear that Emerson was the right leader to continue the implementation of Virgin Australia’s strategy.
Emerson will replace Jayne Hrdlicka, who has led the airline during a period of dramatic change, including its sale to US private equity firm Bain Capital in 2020.
The announcement brings to a close one of the bigger mysteries in corporate Australia: who would replace Hrdlicka after she announced her intention to retire more than a year ago.
It takes Bain a step closer to listing the airline on the Australian sharemarket, having previously held off its plans to bring Virgin back to the ASX.
The appointment of a new chief executive also follows Virgin getting the final tick of approval from the federal government on its tie-up with Qatar Airways.
Emerson, who had been chief commercial officer since 2021, has been a “has been a core part of the team, developing our plans for transformation and growth of the business,” Cotton said.
Virgin’s initial choice of CEO, its chief customer and digital officer Paul Jones, was roundly rejected by the Transport Workers Union (TWU) in February for his past role as a Qantas executive.
During his tenure at Qantas, Jones was a key executive involved in the decision to sack 1700 ground-handler employees as COVID flight restrictions slugged the airline industry. The decision was subsequently deemed illegal by a federal court.
On Wednesday, Emerson pledged to follow the path set out by Hrdlicka.
“I will continue the transformation journey begun under Jayne’s outstanding leadership. The strategy we set as we emerged from administration several years ago is paying off.”
Virgin’s tie-up with Qatar Airways has been approved by the federal government.Credit: Oscar Colman
In a statement, Hrdlicka, who is expected to help Emerson in his transition, said Virgin had “detailed plans in place for the next four years” which will support a “very bright outlook” for the carrier.
Hrdlicka said it was “the perfect time to transition leadership for this next chapter” and called Emerson an “excellent choice” to succeed her as CEO.
The TWU on Wednesday said that it will meet with Emerson and called on the new Virgin chief executive to engage constructively with the union on their concerns about the airline’s alliance with Qatar and likely listing on the share market.
“After ruling out Jones as Jayne Hrdlicka’s successor, it’s critical Emerson and Bain now re-commit to an ongoing worker consultation process around the Qatar stake in the airline and other outstanding concerns,” the TWU said in a statement.
Michael Kaine, the union’s national secretary, said it remained wary of the implications of the “wet lease” arrangements in the Virgin-Qatar deal undermining working conditions of Australian cabin crew, ground crew and pilots.
“Our door is open for the new CEO to meet with worker representatives to establish a long-term plan for the airline that would treat skilled and experienced workers as an essential investment, and build and maintain Virgin as a strong airline into the future,” he said.
With Supratim Adhikari
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