I worked for Euopean for many years and I knew Paul Stoddart quite well. Whatever his other characteristics, he is an astute businessman, and those who succeed in making lots of money from scratch tend to be a hard-nosed lot.
I am not condoning what is happening at EAAC - I was at the eJ roadshow last week and met a lot of old friends who were very angry and I sympathise enormously, having lost my own job with the company when the One-Elevens were retired. My point is that PGS is typical of the Chief Executive breed, not especially nasty or vindictive. Look around at the other airlines - are they led by cuddly, caring, people-friendly types? I think not, although I will be more than happy to hear otherwise.
Paul Stoddart got it wrong and he is taking steps to salvage the business situation on a purely commercial level. Such action involves job losses in any industry not just aviation. In a cold, hard world he is perhaps ruthless, but hardly the Prince of Darkness.