Had requested A$1.4 bln loan from Australian govt Shares tightly...

• Had requested A$1.4 bln loan from Australian govt
• Shares tightly controlled by foreign airlines
• Airline has grounded almost all flights

(Adds details on shareholders, flight cuts)

SYDNEY, April 14 (Reuters) - Cash-strapped Virgin Australia Holdings Ltd (VAH) entered a trading halt on Tuesday, citing ongoing discussions involving financial assistance and restructuring alternatives to help it weather the coronavirus crisis.

The airline, which had requested A$1.4 billion ($895 million) of loans from the Australian government, said the trading halt on its shares and unsecured notes would remain in place either until an announcement by the company or two trading days, whichever was earlier.

Virgin's shares are tightly controlled by a group of foreign airlines including Singapore Airlines Ltd SIAL.SI , Etihad Airways and Chinese conglomerate HNA Group that have also seen a sharp deterioration in revenue due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Virgin last week grounded all domestic flights, except a single daily Sydney-Melbourne service through June 15.

The airline had already cut all international flights except government rescue charters, put most of its workforce on leave and permanently cut all pilots at low-cost arm Tigerair Australia and all crew based in New Zealand.

Virgin competes in the Australian domestic market against larger rival Qantas Airways Ltd (QAN) , which has a stronger balance sheet. ($1 = 1.5640 Australian dollars)