• Virgin Australia and Velocity Frequent Flyer launch Switch-A-Roo Discover Gold Status match offer. 
• Gold members and above of competitor airline loyalty programs invited to hop on over to Velocity Frequent Flyer to receive a Velocity Switch-A-Roo Discover Gold trial membership, with the opportunity for Platinum members (or above) with an eligible frequent flyer program to fast track to Velocity Platinum after completion of the 3-month Discover Gold trial.* 
• Virgin Australia foreshadows the return of in-flight Wi-Fi on selected aircraft ahead of the Christmas holidays with a new, high-speed offer, partnering with Intelsat.  
• A research study conducted by external consultant Butler Caroye for March to June 2022 has found Virgin Australia corporate airfares to be some of the best value in the market and nearly 60 per cent better value than the airline’s nearest competitor on travel between capital cities.** 
• Virgin Australia operational performance is on track ahead of the September school holidays with cancellation rates at record lows. 
• Velocity Frequent Flyer significantly grows in popularity with total members climbing to 10.9 million. 

Tuesday 13 September 2022: It’s time to do the Switch-A-Roo from you know who. From today, Velocity Frequent Flyer, the loyalty program of Virgin Australia, is inviting Platinum and Gold (or above) frequent flyer members of competitor airlines to apply for Velocity Gold Status under a new fast track trial membership.* 

The offer makes it possible for travellers to enjoy many of the rewards of Velocity Gold status while flying with a modern and vibrant airline operated by the world’s Best Cabin Crew, all while simultaneously benefiting from some of the greatest value airfares in the country. 

Let’s do the Switch-A-Roo! 

By simply submitting a short application via the Switch-A-Roo campaign website by 26 September 2022, Gold members and above of competitor airline loyalty programs can apply to receive a 3-month Velocity Discover Gold Status trial membership.* Perks of the highly valued Velocity Gold membership include complimentary Lounge access, priority boarding, preferential seating, higher checked baggage allowances, and lucrative bonus Points when customers book and fly with Virgin Australia.*  

To retain the Velocity Gold membership for 12-months – a sought-after reward only previously offered to the most active Velocity members – the new member is only required to book one eligible flight and earn 80 Status Credits during the 3-month Discover Gold trial membership.*  

And if that wasn’t generous enough, for Platinum (or above) members of an eligible frequent flyer program wanting to fast track to Velocity Platinum status for 12 months – the highest membership tier in the program – all they have to do is earn 200 Status Credits (normally 1,000) during the 3-month Discover Gold trial membership.*  

The only Australian airline loyalty program to offer Family Pooling 
Status Credits can also be maximised through Velocity’s unrivalled Family Pooling mechanism, making it easier for members to quickly climb the status ranks and start flashing their Velocity Platinum or Gold cards at Virgin Australia lounges, priority security and boarding queues.\ 

Surf’s UP with the return of in-flight Wi-Fi 

And if that wasn’t enough great news for one day, Virgin Australia has today foreshadowed the introduction of high-speed in-flight Wi-Fi, which will gradually be installed on majority of the airline’s fleet over the next 18 months, starting before the Christmas holiday break. 

The launch of in-flight Wi-Fi follows a survey of Virgin Australia customers which found one in three leisure guests, and almost half of Business Class guests, said that Wi-Fi was important to them when travelling.  

The popular in-flight feature will be offered by Virgin Australia at high speed with the new and improved experience to be complimentary for the airline’s Business Class guests, as well as Beyond and Velocity Platinum members. A nominal fee to access Wi-Fi will be payable by all other guests. 

Virgin Australia continues to offer some of the best value airfares in the market 

The good news doesn’t stop there, just last week an airfare study released by procurement consultancy, Butler Caroye, found that between March and June 2022 some Virgin Australia corporate domestic Economy fares are over 30 per cent better value in comparison to the airline’s nearest competitor.*** The study also found that some Virgin Australia Business Class fares are almost 60 per cent better value than the same competitor**, with Virgin Australia selling seats at the pointy end for as low as $299 one-way^ Read the airfare study, here. 

Commentary 

Velocity Frequent Flyer CEO, Nick Rohrlach said the airline had received a significant number of requests from members of other loyalty programs to switch to Velocity Frequent Flyer. 

“Virgin Australia is known for being playful, and the Switch-A-Roo campaign is a really great example of us putting our energetic spirit on show for well-travelled Australians who are looking to switch their loyalty to a modern and vibrant airline. 

“Since the July school holidays, we have been inundated with requests from customers of competitor airlines who want to move their loyalty to Virgin Australia, but don’t want to start from the bottom of the status ranks. The Switch-A-Roo campaign is a game changer for these members who can now almost immediately climb to Velocity Gold status by submitting a simple application on the Velocity website.  

“We know we have a compelling offer for business and leisure travellers who have less discretionary spend amid rising inflation but want to fly with an airline who offers some of the best value airfares in the market, lounges, preferential seating, priority security screening and boarding, checked baggage and all the comforts Virgin Australia can provide their guests without the high price tag. We also know we can offer something no one else can, and that’s our wonderful people, who deliver our service with a smile no matter what seat number is on your boarding pass. Importantly, our operational performance is also really strong, and we’ve achieved record low cancellation rates over the past few weeks.  

“Virgin Australia was the first airline in the country to bring genuine competition to the market and today is another instalment of our service to Australian travellers. We look forward to welcoming our new Velocity members onboard Virgin Australia flights as they make the switch,” he said. 

Commenting on the launch of in-flight Wi-Fi, Virgin Australia Group Chief Customer and Digital Officer, Paul Jones said: “We are laser focussed on creating great travel experiences for our guests when they fly with Virgin Australia. We also listen to our guests, and overwhelming they told us that Wi-Fi was important to them, and so we're really pleased to be bringing it back. Our guests value choice and having in-flight Wi-Fi will give them more flexibility on how they spend their time onboard,” he said. 

Today’s significant announcements follows a string of positive news for Virgin Australia customers in the last week, with Qatar Airways and iconic Australian department store, Myer, joining the Velocity Frequent Flyer program, and total Velocity members climbing to 10.9 million members – an average of one member in every Australian household. 

For more information about the Velocity Frequent Flyer Switch-A-Roo Discover Gold membership offer, visit, here. 

NOTES TO EDITOR 

Hop on over to apply for Velocity Discover Gold in three easy steps: 

1. Join Velocity Frequent Flyer here. 
2. Switch-A-Roo by sending an email to switcharoo@velocityfrequentflyer.com by 26 September 2022, that contains the member’s full name and Velocity membership number. Members must use the email address currently linked to their Velocity account;  
3. Attach photographic evidence of the membership card of the frequent flyer program that they have the equivalent of Velocity Gold Status or above with in the same email.  

Virgin Australia on time performance and completion rates 

• Virgin Australia is focused on building the most efficient operation possible to ensure a smooth travel experience for guests. The airline has made some changes to its operation and the results are promising: 
  • Completion rates for the month of August 2022 for domestic services was almost 98 per cent. 
  • On time performance is trending in the right direction at almost 70 per cent for the month of August 2022. 

In-flight Wi-Fi and complimentary in-flight entertainment 

• Virgin Australia has partnered with Intelsat, one of the largest satellite communication services in the world, with more than 50 active satellites currently in service, to launch high-speed in-flight Wi-Fi. 
• The product will gradually be installed on 55 aircraft that are already equipped with Wi-Fi hardware between Christmas holidays 2022 and mid-2023. Majority of the remaining aircraft in the airline’s fleet (approximately 80 per cent) will be fitted with Wi-Fi over the next 18 months.  
• High speed In-flight Wi-Fi will be complimentary for Business Class guests as well as Beyond and Platinum Velocity Frequent Flyer members. A nominal fee (to be announced at a later date) will be payable by all other guests to access the service. 
• High-speed in-flight Wi-Fi is suitable for the following activities: 
  • Messaging 
  • Browsing 
  • Streaming music 
  • Streaming movie content 
• Complimentary inflight entertainment will continue to be available for all guests that bring their own device (mobile, laptop or tablet), having access to over 400 hours of the latest box office movies, TV, podcasts and books. 

General information on Velocity Frequent Flyer 

• Velocity Frequent Flyer boasts more than 10.9 million members and is the only Australian airline loyalty program that is free to join. 
• Qualifying for Velocity Platinum ordinarily requires a member to fly eight eligible sectors and earn 1,000 Status Credits in one year. 
• Qualifying for Velocity Gold membership ordinarily requires a member to fly four eligible sectors and earn 500 Status Credits in one year. 
• Velocity Platinum and Gold status key benefits: 
  • Access to Virgin Australia domestic lounges, with complimentary lounge access for one guest, and up to three children; 
  • Access to partner airline lounges, subject to eligibility and fare class; 
  • Priority check-in and screening at major domestic airports; 
  • Additional complimentary baggage; 
  • Preferential seating; and 
  • Access to flexible flying ‘Fly ahead’ (on earlier flights where available and subject to fare class)  
• Examples of status credits earned on Virgin Australia one-way flights: 
  • Melbourne – Sydney in Business Class = 55 status credits (110 return) 
  • Melbourne – Sydney in Economy/Economy = 25 status credits (50 return)  
  • Melbourne – Perth in Economy = 45 status credits (90 return) 
  • Brisbane – Hobart in Business Class = 90 status credits (180 return) 
• Virgin Australia Lounge network: 
  • Brisbane 
  • Melbourne 
  • Sydney 
  • Canberra 
  • Gold Coast 
  • Perth 
  • Adelaide 

Footnotes 

*Switcharoo Discover Gold: Offer valid 12-26 September 2022. Limited availability. Eligibility criteria, exclusions and T&Cs apply. View full T&Cs at experience.velocityfrequentflyer.com/flying-status/flying-with-status/switcharoo. Velocity Membership T&Cs also apply, view at velocityfrequentflyer.com/TermsandConditions 

**Butler Caroye, “Australian Domestic Business Airfares in 1st Half 2022 – Blue Paper”, August 2022. Butler Caroye found that in the period from March to June 2022, for travel between capital city routes, the average Business Class Fares was approximately 56% cheaper at Virgin Australia compared to its main competitor, refer to pages 3 and 8. The full study can be read here. 

***Butler Caroye found that in the period from March to June 2022, for travel between capital city routes, the airfare gap between Virgin Australia and its main competitor for Domestic Corporate Economy Fares was 30%, refer to page 5. The full study can be read here. 

^Based on a one-way Virgin Australia Business Class fare between ADLMEL, BNEMEL, BNEMKY, MELSYD, MELOOL, OOLSYD, bought on www.virginaustralia.com, at least 28-days prior to travel, subject to available fare class.