The last heroic captain of industry to rescue a semi-state company from itself by taking it private was Sir Anthony O'Reilly. We used to have one of the most advanced telecoms networks in the world. Now it's hard to get a basic broadband service.
I can't believe how naive some of the people posting here are if they think an MBO would have been to the benefit of their beloved airline/insustry/hobby!
WW and his team have done an excellent job. That doesn't give them a right to do what they like.
The totally simplistic view that private is always better than public gets on my nerves sometimes.
Remember that it is a state owned Aer Lingus that is one of the most successful airlines flying today.
Declaration of interest: I'm a semi-state employee (non-aviation)