One of the rumours doing the rounds is that the consultants were brought in to investigate the costs of shutting down QF International entirely. 500 million was the rumoured figure.
If, and I stress if this rumour is correct, then it is just the official acknowledgment of a strategy that has been in train for at least a decade. The EK deal was the biggest hurdle - the ACCC blessing was the key pivotal decision. Domestic is now hooked up to a true international partner. The current management never had any intention of attempting to compete beyond domestic and near regional.