Oracle,
Every comment in this thread has been met by a well written reply from yourself. Your knowledge of the subject is so strong one might wonder whether you could be involved in what is happening. Sounds like it is all doom and gloom, but there are people with some serious cash trying to get something started.
My initial post wasn't made up - people are trying hard to keep it all a secret but there are a number of leaks. I've heard the rumours from different sources over the last seven days and it seems I'm not the only one who has heard similar things. Pilots are terrible for gossiping - nothing stays secret for long.