Virgin Australia ventures into Jetstar territory with ‘seat only’ economy fare offer

Virgin Australia is venturing into low cost carrier territory with a new ‘seat only’ fare in its economy cabin.

Virgin Australia is hoping to lure more “budget conscious” travellers with a new no-frills economy fare from September 20. Picture: Brendon Thorne/Bloomberg

Virgin Australia is venturing into budget airline territory with a new “seat only” fare in its economy cabin.

The “economy lite” fare comes with a seat of the airline’s choosing, and up to 7kg of carry-on luggage but anything else is extra.

Starting from a lead-in price of $59, the fare represents a 33 per cent reduction on Virgin’s cheapest pre-Covid economy seats in an apparent effort to compete with Qantas’s low fares partner Jetstar.

Economy passengers will also have the option of two other fares – flex and choice – which include 23kg of checked baggage as well as 7kg of carry-on, plus seat selection.

As the name suggests, flex fares come with greater flexibility for last-minute flight and name changes, while the choice option has some booking flexibility plus extra Velocity frequent flyer points and status credits.

A Virgin spokesman said the fare changes followed an extensive review of the airline’s fare pricing and structure.

“We discovered that one in every three Virgin Australia customers don’t bring a checked bag when they travel despite a bag allowance built in to their airfare,” he said.

“On flights between Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, that number is even higher.”

He said the new options aimed to “put the power back in the hands of customers by leaving it up to them to choose what they want”.

“If they don’t want a checked bag or seat selection, they won’t have to pay for it – it’s that simple, If they prefer to keep the extras, there are great value inclusive fare options available,” said the spokesman.

“Every customer is unique and has different needs and budgets and we want to welcome all of them on-board to experience our award-winning service, in the way that best suits them.”

The Qantas Group noted the announcement by Virgin Australia and dismissed any suggestion the airline would rival Jetstar’s low fares.

A spokesman said the airline was the “leading low cost carrier” in the country, and travellers could be confident they will always get the lowest fares with Jetstar.

It’s the latest in a string of changes to Virgin’s in-flight experience since the airline was brought out of administration by new owners Bain Capital.

Free snacks were removed earlier this year in favour of a buy on board menu for economy passengers while the business class offering was revamped to be “more contemporary” with a selection of crowd pleasers like avocado smash and lamb pies.

In-flight Wi-Fi remained unavailable but an announcement was expected by the end of the year.

The carrier repositioned itself as a “mid-market” airline under Bain Capital, in an effort to appeal to budget-conscious leisure travellers as well as price-sensitive business passengers.

But the latest move would appear to target Jetstar’s market, following the demise of Tigerair.

Other airlines that also offer a low cost carrier product like economy lite, include Delta, American Airlines, JetBlue, Air New Zealand and Lufthansa.

The new economy lite fares will not be available until September 20 and then only through the Virgin website.