I have considerable respect for the timing and prescience demonstrated by Alliance's management. I'm guessing they think something is about to happen either in the economy or the aviation industry such that Alliance has chosen this moment as the best time to take the money and run. Remember their previous incarnation, Flight West Airlines, with some of the same names in management? Flight West chose to go into voluntary liquidation shortly before the Ansett collapse and was reincarnated/did a Phoenix as Alliance the following year. I wonder how it will play out this time around?