Yeh, it does help though if you are gifted $800m dollars by the NZ Government in order to stop you going bankrupt due to incredibly incompetent financial and strategic decisions... bit easier with the cushion of State ownership.
Not to detract from what Fyfe achieved but seriously, if it weren't for that capital injection and share buy from the NZ taxpayer, their performance wouldn't be looking to good over the last few years.
Need to put things in perspective.
Yes for sure, perspective is important.
Qantas received AUD$1.35 billion balance sheet clean up prior to its listing in 1995. It had very little debt. How does its debt to equity ratio look these days when you bring on balance sheet the leases excluded, what is debt relative to equity then?
It also 'purchased' the domestic operation for AUD$400 million prior to its listing.
By December 2013 Qantas needed according to Mr Joyce AUD$3 billion to survive, only to recant it six weeks later. Now miraculously Qantas is transformed...
It also has a whole one aircraft to add to its international fleet that sources suggest will only make it to EGLL 50% of the time!
Perspective is very important