Getting rid of the foreign operator maintenance in my opinion has been planned way in advance, look at it from managements point of view, they have not got enough manpower to look after our own aircraft, and have little hope of attracting the necessary engineers on existing wages, so by getting rid of foreign contracts they have freed up some manpower from the S.I.T. that can be re-deployed to the jetbase to cover their shortfall as very few apprentices are coming through for the next few years and ames are leaving at an alarming rate, just another knee jerk reaction, reminds you of the NSW state government.