Talking to EI crew, the realisation is that a long term future can only be secured through consolidation and that being he case IAG may well be the best option. For a lot of EI crew, Walsh at he helm is more of a concern. Once bitten twice......
Indeed. WIllie is the worry for a lot of EI staff. He was generally loathed in his time as Captain, middle mngr and CEO.
Saying that, I believe IAG is the best strategic fit for EI.
In relation to the IAG pledges to the Irish Govt:
-Not selling the slots doesn't mean they cannot be leased.
-HQed in Ireland makes sense as its a sensitive subject but also takes advantage of the Irish 12.5% tax rate.
-"Operate the LHR routes for at least next 5 yrs" No reason why they would stop operating them. DUB-LHR is a goldmine for EI, hogh loads, high fares, high frequency. SNN and ORK feed into BA longhaul so cutting them will lose IAG pax overall. I could see a slight reduction in overall frequency on DUB-LHR,but if capacity remains even then "connectivity" is guaranteed. As above I think BA could pull off the route and use their own slots elsewhere.