Telfer86, I’m not sure who you fly for but the S/O gig is pretty soul destroying after about 18 months. Those who come into the airline after a solid G/A career hope to get a window seat, then during the lost years, to sit for 10 plus in the back seat is mind numbing. Add to that the horseS**t of not being allowed in the front below 20,000’ (what genius dreamed that one up?).
I did 5 years on the 744 As an S/O after a long G/A stint and wanted to strangle someone (preferably me) after about year 3. Add to that a 21 year wait for an East coast 737 command, while listening to the village idiot crow about the amaaaaaazing performance of J* and it was another case of wanting to punch someone (preferably the SLIC). I kept reminding myself that I had the cash to pay the bills and I could always be in the sand/honkers/G/A etc. Yes, it’s a pretty good place to be “stuck” but the psychology isn’t just about the cash, it’s the frustration of watching a multi millionaire ****** preen himself while running the national carrier into the ground, all the while telling the crew that they’re a bunch of c***s.
As for the new entity threat, it isn’t a threat. Management don’t need to ask, they just do. Think of all the other entities QF has started or bought, it will happen if the SLIC thinks it will hold the share price up long enough for him to retire richer than Gina Rhinehart.