Virgin Australia

"Flight VA171 between Brisbane and Port Vila returned to Brisbane [and] VA170 was cancelled after we became aware that the state of the runway had deteriorated," the airline said in a statement on Monday.

"A full inspection will be carried out by Virgin Australia engineers [on Tuesday] ... prior to determination as to whether services to Vanuatu can continue.

"Safety is always our number one priority and we do apologise for the inconvenience."

The first flight from Brisbane yesterday marks the resumption of the airline’s three times weekly service to Bauerfield.

Airports Vanuatu CEO Jason Rakau is pleased the airline can resume flights to Port Vila.

“We are glad to see the Virgin tail back at our gateway airport and look forward to working closely with all our client airlines to ensure their continued services to Vanuatu”.

“Safety is always our number one priority and we will continue to monitor the runway to ensure that it remains suitable for operations,” Virgin Australia said.

The airline offers three flights a week from Brisbane.

The Australian carrier’s first flight to Port Vila since suspending service to the popular tourist destination in January due to concerns about the runway is planned for May 23. Virgin will fly three times a week between Brisbane and Port Vila with Boeing 737-800s.

On Virgin's website, the carrier is taking bookings for flights from May the 23rd.

Those flights will be subject to the independent assessments, and Virgin's confidence that the runway will be appropriately maintained.

RNZI reports the US$1.2 million repair work, which began in late February, was carried out after safety concerns about the runway in January led to the suspension of all Virgin Australia and Air New Zealand flights.

Works to repair the runway were completed on Monday, with the New Zealand contractor Fulton Hogan completed resurfacing work, crack sealing and line markings.

Qantas and Air New Zealand suspended their flights to the tourist destination earlier this week but Virgin delayed making its decision, saying it had sent safety experts to the airport to inspect the condition of the runway.

Its safety experts conducted a full review at the weekend and decided it was safe for their aircraft to operate.

Virgin says it is working closely with local authorities and the Australian Civil Aviation Authority to ensure the condition of the runway remains safe at all times.