B787 But a Dream?
Putting aside the lure of what QF may or may not do I am more interested in the fact that the Dreamliner is now several years behind schedule in terms of even getting the beastie into the air to see if it actually works. Seems the official word out of Seattle avoids the issue altogether. The order book is only holding because of the age of most operators fleets already, e.g. QF and they need any efficiencies they can get out of any airframe, not just a 787. The GFC has also put a spanner into the world of esoteric aircraft finance, AIG was the big mover and shaker here, so funding the build lines may yet cause some major problems.
Add to the mix - "Hmmm youre losing money on most routes, you've got a lot of pension liabilities there, how much tied up in the Freq Flyer scheme to be redeemed, the IMF are forecasting negative GDP for as far as the eye can see, and you want to borrow what for what when?"
Seems if your company has cash or a sovereign wealth fund behind it, it may do the deal but everyone else is looking decidedly uninteresting from an investment perspective.