Just an off the cuff thought, but what are the Redundancy provisions in Jetstar? Perhaps A fraction the cost of those in QF I would assume? They most likely don’t have a massively complex and expensive RIN process either.
Consider the Jetstar 11 787s get a repaint with a Roo on the tail, the 5 747s and 6 (possibly more) of the 380s get retired, and then crews directed to the now enlarged 787 fleet, which would have a mix of -8 and -9 versions going forward, avoiding a lot of expensive displacement in a RIN.
The result is a super efficient twin engine wide body fleet to replace the 4 engine money guzzlers, with two sub types to use in various roles as demanded by capacity, which is much more suited to the market predictions going into the next two years.
It also potentially avoids a massive amount of cost of displacement and retraining of the RIN process, AND QFs likely much more expensive Redundancy process as a result. All the while also minimizing any potential legal wrangling QF might have to do around approval to be working outside of EAs etc.
Not a great thought for those in JQ, but as much as I don’t see full A380s flying around any time soon, I don’t see 300 plus punters in one hit from multiple Capital cities heading to Bali, Vietnam, Hawaii in 787s either.
Hopefully it just a pointless brain fart and we find a way out this mess without anyone losing out.