CM,
There is nothing in Ch 11 law that specifies "their respective governments give them bridging loans, credit notes or free insurance cover". I cannot see how you can call Chapt 11 a state subsidy if you actually knew anything about it!
2 issues that are unrelated to Ch 11, but brought up the likes of Eddington are:
- The ATSB that was setup post 9/11 to provide loan guarantees for airlines that suffered the airspace shutdown. Yes this was a subsidy, if you like, but remember that UA - the largest US carrier at the time, was denied.
- dumping pensions onto the PBGC. It is hardly a subsidy - but rather a govt setup for guaranteeing (not all, but some portion of pensions). How is this different or worse than UK Pensions?
Or should we call UK NHS a state subsidy because of the reduced costs of health insurance for employers in the UK?