Virgin boss Paul Scurrah will leave after Bain takeover, administrator confirms

Virgin Australia's CE Paul Scurrah will depart the company and be replaced by former Jetstar boss Jayne Hrdlicka after falling out with the airline's new private equity owner Bain Capital over its plan to take the carrier downmarket. The change in leadership has enraged unions representing Virgin's workforce, which backed Scurrah and his vision to maintain the airline as a full-service carrier competing head-to-head with Qantas. Bain said publicly in June it supported Scurrah's plan, but sources close to the company said a schism emerged in recent months when the private equity firm reverted to its earlier plan to make Virgin a "hybrid carrier", positioned somewhere between Qantas and Jetstar. Virgin's administrators Deloitte, appointed to run the Virgin sale after it collapsed under debts of $6.8b in April, confirmed on Thursday Scurrah will stand down when Virgin is formally handed over to Bain in early November. Bain confirmed it will replace him with Hrdlicka, who was a Bain executive prior to joining the Qantas group in 2010 and advised the private equity firm on its bid for Virgin. Scurrah's departure was imminent on Wednesday, with sources saying he was locked in a meeting with Bain negotiating his exit.<br/>