When the $30-million deal was given the all clear by the Foreign Investment Review Board in October, Tamworth mayor Col Murray said optimistically, there could be pilots at the facility by Christmas.

Instead, the airline will send its next round of recruits to its flight training school in South Australia, as the council plays hardball on the price to lease the facility at Tamworth airport.

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Cr Murray said he was not across the finer details of the negotiations and that questions should be directed towards council's business director Jon Sommerlad.

However, Mr Sommerlad declined the Leader's request for an interview, other than to say in a text message: "Things are continuing with Virgin from a council perspective".

A Virgin spokesperson said commercial negotiations "remain ongoing" with council to lease the Tamworth airport facilities.

The airline is also still in talks with Australian International Aviation College (AIAC), who will conduct the flight training.

"Subject to the successful completion of the negotiations with both Tamworth Regional Council and AIAC, and the commencement of their operations, Virgin Australia intends to commence its next pilot cadetship in Tamworth in 2020," the spokesperson said.

Virgin's pilot cadetship program is run on an ad hoc basis, so it's unknown when the airline will start training its next batch of recruits. Last year, it commenced courses in January and June.

Council recently signed a long-term deal with pilot trainers CAE to use the airport facilities, however Cr Murray wouldn't confirm if that meant Virgin had scaled back its original Tamworth plans.

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