Virgin Australia Partners With Qatar Airways To Deliver Competitive Edge In Long-Haul Travel With New Routes From Australia To Doha

Saturday, June 7, 2025

Virgin Australia is taking the big leap back into international long-haul travel by partnering with Qatar Airways to commence non-stop flights on multiple routes from Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, and Melbourne to Doha on June 12, 2025. This strategic partnership allows Virgin to return to the widebody market on Qatar’s Boeing 777-300ER planes and crew while providing Qatar Airways with increased Australia–Europe corridor access without violating bilateral flight limits. The initiative positions both airlines to compete with industry behemoths such as Emirates and Singapore Airlines with a record-breaking number of ten daily flights to Doha, providing faster connections, more seat availability, and increased global connectivity to Australia-bound travelers.

Virgin Australia Makes a Bold Comeback to the Middle East with New Daily Flights to Doha Through Qatar Airways Alliance

In a strategic push to reclaim its long-haul ambitions, Virgin Australia is set to launch new flights to Doha beginning June 12, 2025. Backed by its partner Qatar Airways, Virgin will use the opportunity to re-enter the widebody international market—nearly five years after retiring its previous twin-aisle fleet. This move leverages Australia’s underutilized traffic rights with Qatar, enabling the Gulf carrier to quietly expand its influence Down Under.

Virgin Australia will launch new nonstop flights to Doha from Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, and Melbourne by leasing Boeing 777-300ER aircraft and crew directly from Qatar Airways. The services mark Virgin’s second venture into the Middle East and are expected to shake up the competitive dynamics of the Australia-Europe corridor, currently dominated by Emirates and Singapore Airlines.

Virgin Australia Set to Launch First-Ever Doha Flight on June 12

Virgin Australia’s reentry into the Middle East begins with its inaugural Doha flight from Sydney on June 12. This development follows the official end of its long-standing relationship with Etihad Airways on June 1, 2025. Between 2011 and 2017, Virgin had operated flights to Abu Dhabi as part of a code-share partnership with Etihad, which had a stake in Virgin Australia Holdings at the time.

Now, the torch has been passed to Qatar Airways, which owns 25% of Virgin Australia. Under the new partnership, Virgin will act as a proxy for Qatar Airways by operating long-haul services to Doha, enabling the Gulf airline to increase its reach in the competitive Australian market without violating current bilateral restrictions.

This strategy mirrors a similar arrangement between Turkish Airlines and IndiGo, where the Turkish flag carrier leases widebody jets to expand into India through a local partner.

Virgin Australia’s Flight Schedule to Doha

Virgin’s rollout of Doha flights will be phased across four major Australian cities, culminating in full operations by December. All flights will be operated using Qatar Airways-leased Boeing 777-300ERs and are scheduled as daily nonstop services.

Flight Start Dates and Origins:

Sydney to Doha – June 12Brisbane to Doha – June 19Perth to Doha – June 26Melbourne to Doha – December 1

Each of these services will be flown daily, with the Brisbane, Perth, and Melbourne launches building toward a comprehensive Australia-to-Qatar network.

Virgin Australia and Qatar Airways are set to operate a combined total of ten nonstop flights to Doha each day, marking a significant expansion in their joint network.

By late 2025, Virgin Australia and Qatar Airways are set to operate a combined total of ten nonstop flights each day between Australia and Doha, establishing an unprecedented level of direct connectivity on this corridor. This is a notable leap from the current six daily services operated solely by Qatar Airways prior to Virgin’s entry.

Here’s how the build-up will unfold:

June 11: 6 daily Qatar Airways flightsJune 12: 7 daily flights (Virgin adds Sydney)June 19: 8 daily flights (Virgin adds Brisbane)June 26: 9 daily flights (Virgin adds Perth)December 1: 10 daily flights (Virgin adds Melbourne)

This expansion places the combined Qatar-Virgin offering just below Emirates’ current 11 daily services and behind Singapore Airlines’ commanding 21 daily departures from Australia. Meanwhile, Cathay Pacific has also ramped up with up to 12 daily services between Australia and Hong Kong.

Notably, Emirates recently streamlined its Australia services by ending its last one-stop route (Melbourne–Singapore–Dubai) in March 2025, focusing instead on nonstop offerings to remain competitive.

Canberra Returns to Qatar’s Network Via Melbourne in December

Qatar Airways will resume service to Canberra in December 2025, leveraging the same access strategy it used from 2018 to 2020. Qatar Airways previously routed flights through Canberra via Sydney as a strategic move to secure additional flight approvals into Australia’s major hubs. While Canberra wasn’t the core focus, this regulatory approach enabled the airline to increase its Sydney operations to twice daily.

With Virgin now stepping in to operate flights on behalf of Qatar using the unused portion of Australia’s traffic rights, the oneworld member is set to return to Canberra—but with a new routing. Instead of the old Sydney tag-on, Canberra will now be served via Melbourne, replacing the current tag-on to Adelaide.

This shift signals a deeper transformation in airline strategy and route planning approaches. Virgin’s Melbourne–Doha flight, launching December 1, will double down on demand and enable triple daily departures from Melbourne when combined with Qatar Airways’ existing two daily services. Emirates already flies three nonstop daily services from Melbourne, so this move levels the playing field.

December 2025: Full Route Map of Virgin and Qatar Airways’ Doha Services

As peak summer travel hits Australia in December, the Qatar-Virgin partnership will deliver a robust 10-flight-a-day network to Doha. The updated operations for both carriers are summarized below:Here is a fully rewritten, 100% unique version of the table content in sentence format for natural integration into an article or presentation:

Canberra will be linked via Virgin’s daily 777-300ER service operating through Melbourne, filling the gap left by Qatar Airways, which currently has no direct presence on the route.

From Sydney, Virgin Australia will operate daily flights using a Boeing 777-300ER, while Qatar Airways continues with its flagship Airbus A380 service.

Brisbane will see both carriers offering daily operations with Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, doubling seat availability on the route.

On the Perth route, Virgin and Qatar will each fly daily with Boeing 777-300ERs, ensuring consistent widebody service from Western Australia.

Melbourne will become a major hub, with Virgin launching daily 777-300ER flights and Qatar Airways already running two daily services using the same aircraft type.

Adelaide will remain exclusively served by Qatar Airways with daily flights operated by the Airbus A350-900, as Virgin does not plan to fly this route.

Flights to Canberra will operate as a leg of the Melbourne service in both directions.

Virgin’s Long-Haul Revival Aligns with Airport Expansion

Virgin’s renewed focus on long-haul flying is also timely, as Australia’s major international airports—Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, and Melbourne—are all undergoing significant expansion. These upgrades are designed to meet growing international demand and accommodate increased widebody traffic.

By leasing aircraft and crews from Qatar Airways, Virgin sidesteps the lengthy process of rebuilding its own long-haul fleet from scratch. It also gives Qatar Airways the advantage of expanding its footprint in a key market without breaching bilateral aviation agreements, making this a mutually beneficial arrangement.

Conclusion

Virgin Australia has formed an alliance with Qatar Airways to return to the long-haul sector with new direct routes from Australia to Doha to provide a competitive advantage over international competition. This strong partnership opens up daily flights from four key cities, increasing connectivity and changing the face of international travel from Australia.

Virgin Australia’s comeback in the long-haul segment is not just a return to the skies but a calculated alliance with Qatar Airways that strengthens both airlines’ positions in the highly competitive Australia-Europe corridor. With 10 daily services to Doha by year’s end, the move intensifies pressure on other full-service giants like Emirates and Singapore Airlines while unlocking new travel opportunities for Australians across Europe, the Middle East, and beyond.