Originally Posted by
Maxfli
All of these (bar easyjet) are flag carriers... BA (though totally privatised) would be our closest equivalent. EJ raised significant funds elsewhere, had a strong balance sheet before this and crucially their capacity couldn't feasibly be replaced anywhere near as quickly as VS, I appreciate a lot of this capacity won't be required for several months- if not years. Compare 40ish airframes to 330ish (a good percentage which are owned - mentioned above) I totally understand the need for competition and whilst a BA monopoly would benefit many of us on this forum I don't think anyone wants to see our friends/family/pilots+crew e.t.c. out of jobs.
Would you invest your own money into virgin right now? Whilst the whole aim of the government is to support/re-start the economy would the loss of a financially depleted company really prevent an overall recovery? In a time where several uk airlines are making record profits what does it say that the company has been making losses since 2016 and not looking to return to profit until 2021? Would the £500m actually save them? What collateral is there to the tax payers 500m?I have no answers to any of these questions and I sincerely hope the guys/girls at VS make it through- in whatever shape. It doesn't seem like a sound bail-out to the average person and RBs previous publicity is not helping. With any luck the group goes to creditors (like many other large companies mentioned above) and generates the cash required to keep them going. Unfortunately there will be several casualties in the aftermath of COVID and it really has become survival of the fittest in many senses.
Good luck to all involved and hopefully we'll all be off this forum and flying again soon!