Virgin Australia CEO’s tribute to her late husband aims to help others fight cancer

Virgin Australia chief Jayne Hrdlicka has raised more than $20,000 for cancer research, following the devastating loss of her husband.

Virgin Australia chief Jayne Hrdlicka has raised more than $20,000 for cancer research. Picture: Bloomberg

Virgin Australia chief executive Jayne Hrdlicka has raised more than $20,000 for cancer research in a touching gesture following the death of husband Jason Gaudin.

Mr Gaudin passed away earlier this month after a long battle with a rare, aggressive and ultimately incurable form of cancer, leaving behind Ms Hrdlicka and their two sons.

He was first diagnosed in 2019 and lived years beyond the expectations of doctors, Ms Hrdlicka noted in her initial announcement of his death on May 8.

In a follow-up message on her LinkedIn page, Ms Hrdlicka thanked the hundreds of people who sent their condolences, and asked that anyone who wished to honour his memory, donate to Cancer Council Queensland.

“The boys and I are very grateful for your kind words and thoughts,” Ms Hrdlicka wrote.

“A number of people have asked about honouring Jason’s memory. We have set up the following page in tribute to Jason, for anyone who would like to help advance cancer research.”

The link to the Cancer Council site showed more than $20,500 had already been raised, thanks to $5000 donations from Tennis Australia and Sabre, more than $1000 from United Airlines and $1000 from Brisbane Airport.

Dozens of others had pitched in, including friends, colleagues and others touched by cancer.

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

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

Ms Hrdlicka had indicated she would take a few weeks of personal leave to spend with her family and it was unclear whether she would attend a major Virgin Australia announcement on June 1 about the Velocity frequent flyer program.

She is also on the invitation list for the International Air Transport Association AGM in Istanbul from June 4, and was expected at the launch of Cairns-Tokyo flights from June 28.

The airline is in the process of preparing to return to the ASX. Its US owner, Bain Capital, is believed to be targeting November for an initial public offering (IPO).

The company was expected to sell off up to 40 per cent of its stake in the airline for about $1bn.

Virgin Australia chairman Ryan Cotton recently emailed employees with the news that the IPO was “well advanced” but said the “ultimate window of opportunity would depend on market conditions”.

It was also noted that Virgin Australia was on track for a full-year profit, after achieving a $125m gain in the six months to December 2022.

Virgin Australia was delisted from the ASX in 2020 after being bought by Bain Capital for $3.5bn, following the airline’s financial collapse when the Covid-19 pandemic erupted.