Sunfish,
I, and many like myself, still have a great deal of pride in QANTAS, the name and image it once was, but are filled with disgust at the way it is being run into the ground. If we take a look at what makes up the board and senior management, not one of them have served as a QANTAS employee before taking up those all important positions, but have been brought in from outside both related and non-related industries, and those that came from related industries have come from failed companies, a'la Ansett, and have brought that rot into QANTAS.
The whining by Dixon,Jackson and the Board and their successors became deafening, and it's typical of a company that not only cannot compete, but doesn't have a single original thought in its collective management brain.
No argument here and have NEVER thought or said otherwise.
You wrote this back on link 306:
Qantas has a regular public transport AOC. It is also the subject of an Act of Parliament - the Qantas Sale Act.
That act was passed for good reason - Qantas has been permitted to offer an essential public service, with restrictions aimed at protecting what's loosely termed these days as "The public interest".
It has been judged necessary that for the sake of Australia's sovereignty and defense needs, as well as economic development, that we maintain some form of control over an internationally capable airline.
I'm not arguing here, but asking a question of which you may have an answer to. Isn't this meant to be regulated by the government and overseen by the government or one of its bodies to ensure QANTAS is acting within the intent of the ACT? If so, then the government or its transportation body has taken their eyes off the ball while QANTAS management are downsizing the company.
It became very clear on 29 October of last year, how inept and incompetent our government was then and is now, and that no action was taken against the management for grounding ALL essential domestic and international services of QANTAS stranding up to 100,000 passengers worldwide.
I am now of the firm belief that the government didn't want to put pressure on QANTAS to shape up or shut down, as to do so would have put them in a compromised position with the public more so than they already are, but seem to be relieved that someone else is doing their work for them. (i.e. AJ and co.)