Virgin Australia has obtained a 12-month, $425 million secured loan from its four major shareholders, Air New Zealand, Etihad Airways, Singapore Airlines and Virgin Group that will give the airline more time to fix up its balance sheet. 
The move, foreshadowed by The Australian Financial Review's Due Diligence column on Monday, comes as part of a broader review of Virgin's capital structure.
The airline took out a $US125 million ($164 million) loan in the first half of the financial year amid a decline in its unrestricted cash balance.
Virgin chairman Elizabeth Bryan said the airline had "largely completed" one of the most successful transformations in Australian corporate history over the last six years and was now reporting profitability and earnings growth.
"The board is focused on optimising the group's balance sheet and capital structure to support the ongoing execution of its strategy and will lead a capital structure review," she said. 
"The group has secured loan facilities from its major shareholders that provide a flexible source of funding while the review is undertaken."
The review will include an assessment of the appropriate mix of debt and equity capital and operational initiatives to improve cash flow and profitability.
The airline did not provide a timeframe for when the review would be completed. It also did it reveal whether the $425 million loan, provided on arm's length commercial terms, would be put toward repaying debt.
The interest rate of the loan, and whether it was lower than the 8.5 per cent coupon on its high-yield bonds, was not revealed.
Chief executive John Borghetti said Virgin was "well placed to deliver ongoing growth and choice to Australian travellers" after the transformation it had undergone over the last five years.
Air NZ, Etihad and Singapore Airlines had previously provided Virgin with a $90 million line of credit in   August 2013, but that was quickly repaid by a $350 million capital raising announced in   November that year.
The latest loan is subordinated to Virgin's existing debt and on arm's length commercial terms, with the loan commitments from each shareholder proportionate to their investment in the Australian carrier.
The four shareholders combined control an 84 per cent stake in Virgin. 
Virgin said further details on outcomes of the review would be provided in due course.
Virgin shares had fallen by 12.5 per cent to 35&cent; on Friday ahead of the announcement to the market on Monday morning.