Asia is likely to be BA's focus for growth, as it's the largest probable growth region for the next 10-20 years. Asia ex-China/India is a region that looks remarkably similar to Europe 20 years ago in terms of demographic, scope for liberalisation, regional co-operation versus narrow national intersts etc. China and India are big enough to be considered as separate markets in their own right. Would BA do a JV with a Chinese partner? Is a purchase of Cathay a possibility? That would get BA a much bigger footprint in Asia as well as giving them a mainland China presence via Dragonair. Is the Kingfisher codeshare deal a pre-cursor to taking a stake and covering off India?
The bmi angle is an interesting one. Not sure if/how BA would get this through local, and certainly EU, competition authorities. BA already has a dominant position in the busiest airport in Europe. Wouldn't a bmi acquistion take BA above 50% of LHR's operating capacity? Any takeover would surely come at a price in terms of giving up slots?