Virgin Australia CEO Jayne Hrdlicka takes leave to mourn ‘devastating’ death of husband Jason Gaudin

Jayne Hrdlicka says she will take personal leave over the next few weeks following the loss of husband Jason Gaudin.

Virgin Australia CEO Jayne Hrdlicka in one of her few public appearances in the last six months, announcing new flights from Cairns to Tokyo. Picture: Brendan Radke

Virgin Australia CEO Jayne Hrdlicka will take personal leave for the next few weeks after announcing the devastating loss of her husband Jason Gaudin.

In a short post on LinkedIn, Ms Hrdlicka said Jason was diagnosed with a rare, aggressive and ultimately incurable form of cancer in 2019.

“It is with a heavy heart I say, after a long, difficult and brave battle, he has now moved on,” Ms Hrdlicka wrote.

“For his sake I am grateful that the suffering is behind him.”

She added she would be taking a few weeks leave to spend time with family including the couple’s two sons Alec and Josh.

“I deeply appreciate the heartfelt support and compassion from so many over the last couple of years as Jason and I worked through his various treatment phases and challenges,” said Ms Hrdlicka.

“His strength, incredibly positive attitude and passion for his boys enabled him to live years beyond the expectations of doctors. For that we are blessed and grateful.”

Ms Hrdlicka has kept a relatively low profile this year as she leads preparations by Virgin Australia’s owner Bain Capital, for an initial public offering.

In late April, a series of meetings with potential investors to introduce them to Ms Hrdlicka and chief financial officer Race Strauss was suddenly called off for “personal reasons”.

Mr Gaudin’s cancer diagnosis in 2019 was cited by Ms Hrdlicka as the reason she left a previous role with the a2 Milk Company after just 18-months.

His cancer battle was also raised when the couple relocated from Melbourne to Brisbane in 2020 and they were granted an exemption from hotel quarantine.

Shortly afterwards, Ms Hrdlicka was named as the CEO of Virgin Australia under new owners Bain Capital, replacing Paul Scurrah.

Mr Gaudin was previously the head of corporate and investment banking for Australia and New Zealand at Wells Fargo Bank.

Ms Hrdlicka also holds the position of Tennis Australia chair, after being re-elected to another term in the role through to 2025.

It was unclear whether Ms Hrdlicka would attend the upcoming International Air Transport Association annual general meeting in Istanbul, along with other airline CEOs.

Virgin Australia was still expected to push ahead with an IPO in the second half of the year, providing market conditions were suitable.

In January the airline announced it had made its first profit in a decade for the first half of the 2023 financial year, recording a gain of $125m.

Originally published as Virgin Australia CEO Jayne Hrdlicka takes leave to mourn ‘devastating’ death of husband Jason Gaudin