Aviation consulting.
From world-class operators.
Aviation consulting.
From world-class operators.
Battleground experience from senior strategy roles at Qantas and Virgin Australia. Tested in industry turbulence.
Where airline value is made or lost.
From network planning to corporate strategy, these are the areas where our experience means we can offer more than a framework.
Network Planning
Capacity and scheduling decisions reviewed against what the cycle ahead looks like, not last year's baseline. Route economics stress-tested — bilateral headroom, codeshare exposure, hub dependency, competitor risk — before the schedule commits.
Fleet Strategy
Fleet decisions lock in cost and capacity structures for decades. Type decisions evaluated against the network they have to serve. Leith led fleet optimisation business cases at Qantas International, and directed the fleet transition and widebody wetlease program at Virgin Australia.
Loyalty Programs
Loyalty is more than points and status — it is earn partners, program economics and customer experience working together. As a self-confessed loyalty aficionado, Leith knows what customers want and what airlines need, and led Virgin Australia Velocity's most significant program optimisation.
Revenue & Pricing
Yield strategy, pricing architecture and distribution mix reviewed through a network operator's lens. Where the untapped revenue sits and what it takes to lift revenue per seat.
Restructuring & Recapitalisation
Operator input at the table where financial advisors have none. The network and fleet view the restructuring memo needs but rarely gets. Leith led Virgin Australia's corporate strategy from administration to IPO.
Corporate Strategy & Capital
M&A, equity partnerships and capital structure where the operator view sees what the model misses. Leith led the Qatar Airways widebody wetlease at Virgin Australia — a deal that underpinned a 25% equity stake.
Three ways to engage.
No fixed menu. No retainer minimum. Bring a question, a decision, or a number that doesn't feel right. The engagement follows the problem.
Direct Advisory
A specific call about a live decision. Direct access to Leith for a single session. You bring the question; we bring the operator context. No ongoing engagement structure required.
Project-Based
Defined scope for a specific decision — a network review, a fleet plan stress-test, a restructuring memo the board can read on a Sunday. Scoped to the question.
Fractional Engagement
Ongoing access structured around what the position requires. Useful for carriers without bandwidth for a full-time strategy function, or boards that needs a standing operator read on the numbers.
Experience built through turbulence.
Leith Salem
Founder & Principal | 2010 Advisory
Head of Group Strategy at Virgin Australia, leading corporate strategy from administration through to IPO. Before that, International Network Planning at Qantas. I grew Qantas International to its largest-ever pre-COVID network footprint, with US$5B in annual revenue under management. I came up through investment banking at Goldman Sachs. 12+ years inside two major carriers, with a finance and capital markets read that most airline strategy teams don't carry in-house. Send me one line about the decision in front of you and you'll hear back the same day.