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It's over, Virgin Samoa will soon cease operations

Virgin Australia has confirmed the end of Virgin Samoa, 12 years after launching the joint venture with Samoa's government.

Virgin Australia has confirmed the end of Virgin Samoa, 12 years after launching the joint venture with Samoa’s government.

In an official statement, the airline said the decision to terminate the off-shoot follows recent discussions with Samoa’s leaders.

Although the joint venture will no longer continue past 12 November 2017, Virgin Australia did stress that it was still talking to the island nation’s government on the exact timing to cease services.

In the meantime, the Australian airline will review its options for flights between Samoa and Australia and contact any affected passengers.

Virgin Samoa

“We will provide an update on operations and timing in due course and any affected guests will be proactively contacted to discuss their travel options.”

Virgin Australia

Virgin Samoa was first launched in 2005 as Polynesian Blue and later re-branded in 2011 to fit in with Virgin Australia’s own transformation from Virgin Blue. It operates the only direct services between Samoa and Australia, with routes including Apia-Brisbane as well as Apia-Sydney.

The announcement comes after Samoa’s tourism leaders recently increased marketing activity in the Australian, with an eye-catching social media campaign showing off the destination’s ‘assets’.

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