I also did one of the F27 trips to Narrandera with Sir Reg and his family. I suspect it might have been one of the last if not the last, as he was very unwell and could walk only with the aid of sticks. I have to admit it was a bit of a buzz for a very junior FO to be called out for a trip like that.
I don't know any details of how he mistreated his family. Unfortunately, as a classic 'alpha male', if it's true, he was not alone in that. I know he made a lot of business enemies in his early days. Sadly, you don't make it to the top in the corporate world without leaving a few bodies in your wake, but whatever he did, he didn't hold a candle in nastiness to one of the men who bought AN from him.
I know people who were part of ANA and Butlers never forgave him for what he did to two wonderful companies in those two takeovers. But I also know that 1989 would never have been allowed to sink into the bottomless pit it did if RM had still been at the helm of AN at the time, for too many of the senior pilots, (and quite a few of the junior ones as well), simply had too much respect for him to allow things to go as far as they did. Wahtever his faults, he was able to engender loyalty in his staff in a way that other Knight of the Realm was never able to do.
I have asked myself a number of times what might have been if there hadn't been such bad blood between RM and his son, Bob. I wonder what AN might have become if Bob Ansett had taken over the helm at AN in 1979 and had been able to inject the enthusiasm, fresh ideas and drive into the airline that he did into Budget.
Very big word 'if'....
Last edited by Wiley; 20th Nov 2006 at 03:43.
Reason: Thanks to 'dodgybrothers' for the 'Budget' correction