The future of VARA?

[SpyderPig]

The biggest tell right now is how vital the rat seems to think the resource sector in WA is. Considering VARA haven't stood down any crew through mexico virus and Network canceled their stand downs just past half way through the process, the east coast offices might be just be seeing the value in their regional jet operations? We might find that these two “poor cousins from the west” have more value than the mainline slug gods have given them credit for, management seems to think so. There might be hope for the VARA mob yet. But history shows, VA doesn't make great decisions so maybe it’ll be all red and blue tails in the west yet, opportunity missed yet again no doubt

[Double_Clutch]

Considering VARA haven't stood down any crew through mexico virus

Spyderpig - I would be checking your source on that ... then again, makes for a great rumour.

[Section28- BE]

Originally Posted by mr flappy

Sorry S28, I think your trust is mislaid

GoodO then, 'Mr Flappy'........

rgds
S28- BE

[Buttscratcher]

Has Network taken some of the mine destinations in the north west from VARA?
If so, then what will 'Skywest' VARA have left to offer?

[kddk]

Some work has gone networks way as it has to vara all three recourse operations are quite busy , vara stand downs are not happening nor alliance , network did but didn’t go for long ,

[slice]

Looks like Bain might want to keep the VARA operation in some form. Must be reasonably profitable for this to be considered given they have previously indicated a "one fleet type" was the way forward.

[Colonel_Klink]

Originally Posted by slice

Looks like Bain might want to keep the VARA operation in some form. Must be reasonably profitable for this to be considered given they have previously indicated a "one fleet type" was the way forward.

Possibly not that profitable given the list of concessions that the VARA Pilot Group are looking at making in the interests of holding on to their positions....

[Section28- BE]

Qantas mainline brings 717’s in house.....

Hmmm, NIL editorial...., however:

Shall just, leave this here- Link/Thread: Qantas mainline brings 717’s in house

Be 'Interesting' to watch, play-out......

Be Well/& rgds all
S28- BE

[-41]

What are the concessions ?

[airdualbleedfault]

Klink, VARA return on investment has eclipsed the rest of virgin (except maybe velocity) for years, the reason VARA pilots will take a haircut is simple, greed

[kair1234]

Originally Posted by slice

Looks like Bain might want to keep the VARA operation in some form. Must be reasonably profitable for this to be considered given they have previously indicated a "one fleet type" was the way forward.

A recent affidavit said VARA were insolvent and that the external administrators can no longer proceed by way of members' voluntary (solvent) winding up.

I'm no lawyer but sounds like they weren't making money despite what some have said over the years.

Interesting to see what happens from here...

[Double_Clutch]

Originally Posted by kair1234

A recent affidavit said VARA were insolvent and that the external administrators can no longer proceed by way of members' voluntary (solvent) winding up.

Would you care to share this affidavit you talk about?

[kddk]

Originally Posted by kair1234

A recent affidavit said VARA were insolvent and that the external administrators can no longer proceed by way of members' voluntary (solvent) winding up.

I'm no lawyer but sounds like they weren't making money despite what some have said over the years.

Interesting to see what happens from here...

they were and are making money albeit with a few ups and downs

[-41]

Would it be a 20% salary reduction? Pretty sure their 320 drivers get more than nw.

[airdualbleedfault]

A recent affidavit said VARA were insolvent and that the external administrators can no longer proceed by way of members' voluntary (solvent) winding up.

There's no way in hell that information would be public so like 95% of the rest of the BS that had surfaced about VA and VARA, I calling BS
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[MickG0105]

Originally Posted by Double_Clutch

Would you care to share this affidavit you talk about?

https://www.fedcourt.gov.au/__data/a...it-2772020.pdf
See para 20 which describes the relationship between the VARA and VAH Newco 2 (the latter owns the former) and para 36 regarding the insolvency of VAH Newco 2.

The issue, as detailed at para 20.(d), is that VAH Newco 2 is the guarantor for 900-odd million dollars' worth of unsecured notes (AUD400M + USD350M) .

[MickG0105]

Originally Posted by airdualbleedfault

There's no way in hell that information would be public so like 95% of the rest of the BS that had surfaced about VA and VARA, I calling BS
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See above note to Double_Clutch. It is public and it doesn't look like BS.

[MickG0105]

Originally Posted by Blackout

I think this is the link Mick is referring too:

https://www.fedcourt.gov.au/__data/a...it-2772020.pdf

VAH Newco 2 in default:
$400 Mil, Unsecured Fixed Rate Notes
$490 Mil, Senior Notes

VAH Newco 2 is Sole Shareholder of Skywest, which in turn holds 100% Shares in VARA.

Yes, thanks for that - wrong affidavit in my original post. I'll correct that.

[Section28- BE]

Perhaps, it is better- to just drop the link....??, first.

Here: https://www.fedcourt.gov.au/__data/a...on-2872020.pdf

#3/& 4 contained therein- should suffice, surely....????

Extract:

This document was lodged electronically in the FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA (FCA) on 28/07/2020 9:34:01 PM AEST

rgds All
S28- BE

[MickG0105]

Originally Posted by Section28- BE

Perhaps, it is better- to just drop the link....??, first.

Here: https://www.fedcourt.gov.au/__data/a...on-2872020.pdf

#3/& 4 contained therein- should suffice, surely....????

Extract:

rgds All
S28- BE

I'll very happily be corrected here but having had the time now to read the various submissions, applications and affidavits relating to VAH Newco 2 and, by connection, VARA, this whole thing appears to be the corporate equivalent of shutting down the wrong engine when confronted with an engine fire. In effect, VARA had been placed into liquidation by mistake.

The sequence of events seems to have been along the following lines. When the Board decided to place Virgin Australia Holdings Limited, the parent company, into administration and Deloitte stepped in, decisions needed to be made regarding each of the vast array of companies and trusts controlled by VAH. There were about 55-odd such companies and five trusts. On the basis that some of those entities were likely set up for special purposes that may now have lapsed you'd routinely expect that some of those companies were dormant - no assets or liabilities, essentially just a corporate shell. However, being registered companies each had to have one or more directors.

First thing that the administrator wants to do is clear the decks of extraneous work - they need to decide what's going to be administered by them, what doesn't need to go into administration and what can be wound up to get it off the books. So Strawbridge et al would have asked management, Scurrah and Co, to identify the operational businesses. We know from the initial affidavits that were filed that of the 55-odd companies, 39 were nominated for voluntary administration. On that list of 39 was VARA. We also know that Velocity (the five companies associated with it) was not placed into administration. That left about 15-odd entities, notionally just dormant shells, that were slated for liquidation. On that liquidation list was VAH Newco 2.

In keeping with the practice of both checking and confirming that you're shutting down the correct engine, there's an accounting equivalent for liquidation; you get confirmation via a declaration of solvency signed by the company's director(s). In the case of VAH Newco 2, that signed declaration of solvency came from Paul Scurrah and former CFO Geoff Smith (I can only assume that there was an incomplete handover to Keith Neate when he took the CFO position last year if Geoff Smith was still a director). Any old how, now armed with confirmation that they could liquidate VAH Newco 2, Deloitte set about doing so only to find that - hang on a minute - rather than being dormant with no assets or liabilities per the signed declaration of solvency, VAH Newco 2 in fact had both - it was the 100 percent shareholder of VARA and it was the guarantor for the best part of a AUD one billion in unsecured debt.

This latest round of submissions, applications and affidavits is seeking the reversal of the earlier decision to liquidate VAH Newco 2. The administrator now wants it and another entity, VB Investco, added to the list of companies under voluntary administration.

In the grand scheme of things I don't think that it changes anything much other than to underline the fact, to the extent that it needed to be underlined, that Virgin's management really didn't have a handle on their own corporate structure.