Sydney: Australia’s Virgin Blue Airlines on Thursday said it would defer delivery of two passenger jets for its international offshoot due to a slump in demand for air travel.

Virgin said it would take delivery of the Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, slated for use by V Australia for flights to the US west coast, in 2011 and 2012.

The planes had been meant to go into service next year.

“The extension of the delivery schedule... was a prudent action in the current operating environment and is part of Virgin Blue’s ongoing group-wide measures to adjust its business operations to current and forecast trading conditions,” it said in a statement to the Australian Stock Exchange.

V Australia, which was launched in February, has three aircraft in its fleet and is due to receive a fourth later in the year.

The deferral follows similar moves earlier this month by national carrier Qantas, which slashed its profit forecast by more than half due to tough global conditions.