"...and politicians letting them."
Politicians have no mandate to intervene in the affairs of a publicly listed company. It is not the Government's task to save Qantas and indeed, it would be political suicide for any Government to interfere in the affairs of Qantas.
I would not want to see the current Federal Government attempt to organise a p!ss up in a brewery, let alone a major airline!
So who is East West?
East-West Airlines was an Australian regional airline founded in Tamworth, New South Wales in 1947. It operated to major regional city-centres and connected these centres to various provincial capitals. It was finally acquired by Ansett and ceased operating in 1993.
Alliance had nothing to do with East West. It is the previous Queensland based Flight West Airlines, founded 1987 and acquired by Alliance in 2002.