Willie Walsh

[SEAMASTER]

Guys And Gals

Excuse Me If This Has Been Discussed Before But Do You Think Willie Walsh's Reign To Date At Ba Has Been A Success Or Has He Continued To Pour Ba's Potential Profits Down The Tube.

Ie

Gate Gourmet
Offering Over 100m To Flybe For Connect
Price Fixing Scandal And Subsequent Costs
Cabin Crew And Pilot Disruption
T5 Chaos

Is Ba Now Really In Better Shape Than When He Took Over !

Comments Please.

Seamaster.

[vanHorck]

See Chaos at T5
The answer is obvious and stated there

[ETOPS]

Seamaster

Looks like you are "awash" with Capital Letters :eek:

[Hot Wings]

Who should replace WW?

My vote would be for Sir Gerry Robinson.

[vanHorck]

Richard Branson

[Hot Wings]

Well at least he'd be a master of spin - unlike the current shower!

[BAengineering]

Vanhorck - I agree, Mr Branson would be a valuable addition. I shouldn't think he'd be interested other than full scale BA rebrand.

[CAT1 REVERSION]

How's about that Irish fella, whats his name :E

[Hot Wings]

O'Toole;) .

[Charlie Roy]

Pre Willie Walsh: Losses
Post Willie Walsh: Profits

Willie Walsh has been BA's saviour.

[Hot Wings]

Rod Eddington put the wheels in motion. All WW has done is boost profits by cutting costs and cutting the product to the customer.

You can only remove so many toppings from a pizza!

[840]

Cutting costs is exactly what he was employed to do. When a new CEO was selected, it will be having done this at Aer Lingus that will have impressed.

Of the original five issues, one was inherited, one was spillover from a dispute in another company and two would probably be dismissed by shareholders as in the long term interest of cost-cutting at the airline. Only really Terminal 5 can be regarded as something for which he is responsible.

That raises an interesting question. Can he only cut costs, but not operationally manage a company? That's the key to his long-term future at BA. There's a limit to the amount of cost cutting that can be done.

[EC-ILS]

Michael O'Leary ;)

WW is personally responsilbe for T5 but someone from BAA should be fired.

[groundhand]

Never mind WW surviving, who would bet against BA being taken over?

Now MoL getting his hands on LHR slots to sell off would be an exciting prospect. He'd never operate a BA type airline; nor would RB - they are both too smart to fall for the inherent problems within the BA creaking organisation.

It may be too late for WW to rescue his reputation but where are they going to find someone of any calibre...sorry, no, actually, that is wrong; there are many good aviation managers out there who would make a much better job of it than the current incumbents.

The BA board might learn that ability and experience are better measures than academic qualifications and a wizzy CV. Just look at their current Director of Operations - he has not spent (lasted) more than around 2 years in his last numerous jobs - another words the f**k-ups he's made have not come to fruition until after he has moved up the greasy pole somewhere else. Well this time, he stayed too long and his real ability shone through.

I don't have the all facts to know where all the real blame lies over the T5 farce but basic management nouse tells me that BA's planning for T5 has been woeful; their staff management is, and has been for years,woeful and their PR woeful (they believe their own hype) etc.

The paying passenger will decide their fate.

GH

[Viewedfromabove]

Perhaps WW should have stuck to the Chocolate Factory - or was that someone else?

[Flitefone]

WW is a very smart guy with a near impossible job. He did excellent work at EI, but every move in his current role on the national news, it's not an easy job to manage. As for BA takeover... don't be surprised if the banks in Dubai become significant shareholders in the current market...

[Husky One]

an amusing interlude involving Mr Walsh..

www.weewilliewalsh.co.uk (http://www.weewilliewalsh.co.uk)

[SEAMASTER]

Interesting and thank you for your views, I suppose what I was trying to establish is are you the empolyees at the coal face day in day out ( pilots,cabin crew, ops, crewing whatever your role) happy with the changes that you have seen since his appointment, is he acting in the interset of the longlevity of the organisation or acting in the interests of profits and the shareholders, lets face it he may do five years then he'll probably be off to pastures new. If that is the case what will be the lasting memory for you. ??

[Ransman]

Seamaster, why do you want to know. Looking for a story line perhaps for you to publish? Obviously a "no news" day.:=

[EI-BUD]

Willie Walsh is a great man and he has an excellent track record. He did such an amazing job with Aer Lingus, he and his team took the company where no other leader could have done, seeing changes to the company and taking the unions along etc.

At BA he has also done alot. He has the ability to move to suit the market, reducing cost is the name of the game.

It amazes me that T5 wasnt opened for say 3 weeks with say only 5 aircraft operating in and out to allow to take the snags out and for staff familiarisation.

I wish him well and look forward to a more robust BA when it consolidates its position at the new T5!

[parky747]

Shame that WW didn't want to make a success of the regions. His strategy was clearly to make BA into London Airways.

[nickmanl]

I think the move to London airways was afoot long before WW took the reigns!

Anyway, I know it's a touchy subject but BA has no public obligation to serve the regions considering it is no longer a state owned airline.

[Railgun]

Closing the regions was Willies finest hour. BA connect/cityexpress management were incompetent and the whole operation was a embarrassment on a daily basis.

[GLENO]

Railman......But they would never pull the shuttle routes from the regions would they?.....I wonder why????:}

[groundhand]

Nickman,

Absolutely.

BA in the regions are no different from KL, AF, LH etc.
SH services to feed their hubs.

Basic economics rule.
Now with open skies it will be interesting to see if BA manage to cling on to their core customer base.

GH

[frontcheck]

railgun
"BA connect/cityexpress management were incompetent and the whole operation was a embarrassment on a daily basis."



hmmm, three words, pot , kettle and black come to mind:ouch:

[pwalhx]

"BA connect/cityexpress management were incompetent and the whole operation was a embarrassment on a daily basis."

Unlike of course the exemplarary management of the last week or so.

[Railgun]

I agree, mainline management are no better...

[FlyboyUK]

"BA connect/cityexpress management were incompetent and the whole operation was a embarrassment on a daily basis."

And they did nothing to correct that. Heads should have rolled after the first couple of failed business plans. Instead they left the same clowns running the circus.

Or perhaps they did extremely well at winding down the regions and p:mad:g so many people off that they left rather than closing it down several years ago and having to pay redundancies.

[Railgun]

They were given so much rope its amazing they did not hang themselves before Willie did it.

Yes i can see why people are annoyed that BA are no longer a airline that you can use to fly dot to dot on in the UK but then they are a premium airline...Apparently as long as you dont mind your luggage arriving a few days later!

[Railgun]

http://http://www.forumammo.com/cpg/albums/userpics/10062/leadership15d6211jg9.jpg

What Willie did while T5 was been commissioned....