Yet another "loan"..
 

How long until Singapore takes control?

I can see SIA group consisting of the following in the next 5-10 years.

Singapore Airlines
Virgin Australia
Scoot
Silkair
Tiger Airways

Our NZ, it could be an interesting year on the VA front.

With NZ making an pretty decent first half year profit, they will have some spare cash.

Wouldn't it technically be easier for NZ to purchase, VA than SQ? if NZ goes to 51% VA could just operate under New Zealand traffic rights.

An article in the Australian some days ago revealed the chairman of the board reading the law of the land.
That being the law of corporate governance and the responsibilities of the directors of a company board to act in the best interests of the business at hand. Not in accordance with the directors alternate interests abroad (read agendas). The directors being appointed by the foreign owning carriers does call into question the effect of any conflict of interest.

Ansett just turned in it's grave.

NZ are sort of "damned if they do and damned if they don't" really.

On one hand if they take majority shareholding it is Ansett all over again.

On the other hand if they cut VA loose it is Ansett all over again.

The only difference is that NZ is better capitalized now.

Can we at least say ANZ. It is a company we are talking about, not a country. :cool:

Qantas are hiring soon.

Time to abandon ship?

Air NZ even. They are an airline, not a bank.

The loan does state that there are no rights to more equity, so all the precious Australians don't get their panties in a knot.

Air NZ learned the lesson last time around.

NZ is their ICAO designator is it not?! Given the chosen forum I personally assume anytime I see QF we're referring to an airline rather than the quarter finals of something or the Qatar foundation or the QF hotel in Dresden according to Google.....

Well that's a relief!

Thousands lost their jobs in 2001, I'm glad Air NZ learned a lesson from that

I wonder how long it'll be until the shareholders cut it loose? The strategy was to keep Qantas weak in its own backyard and chase its premium customers.

It hasn't worked, Qantas are milking the cow again and will go after their competition while they are weakened by the dead weight in Australia.

I'd imagine a renewed push into singapores backyard, just as they're nipping at ANZ right now.

I wonder if that'll mean 78's to to go after scoot?

Interesting times.

I wonder if that'll mean 78's to to go after scoot?

Um SQ is the biggest owner in VA so no

I think you will find it is Air NZ #1 then Etihad #2 and Singapore #3 in the shareholdings

You are right

As at 16 September 2015 major shareholders were

Air New Zealand (25.90%)
Singapore Airlines (22.79%)
Etihad Airways (24.18%)
Branson (9.96%)

With fuel being at a record low, late model aircraft etc why the hell are they not making a bucketload of money? Not good having to run off to the three ugly sisters to borrow cash to stay at the dance! Come on Cinderella>>

Maybe Joyce and Strambi were right when they said that the Borg knows how to spend money but not so good on bringing it back in? :(

They hedged fuel....

And I quote from a news story

"Virgin Australia chairman Elizabeth Bryan says the airline intends to scrutinise the structure of its balance sheet and examine whether it needs to be improved after coming through the bloody capacity war with Qantas.

Ms Bryan, who is a former chairman of oil refiner Caltex, also defended the company’s hedging position, which analysts have suggested prevented Virgin from enjoying the same windfall from the big drop in oil prices as its arch rival, noting “it is not that one way is right and one way is wrong, that some person is smarter and one is more stupid’’.

Could this be a run by the Asian lion to get what they have wanted since before the AN collapse? Traffic rights on the Pacific ex Australia? It smells of the early stages of a long term engineering regime.

It was quite obvious (to me at least - and I could be totally wrong but don't think so) that SQ had with 2 board members shifted the fate of AN by placing NZ, with 2 members on their board in a position to take control of the cash stripped and foundering AN empire, knowing they were totally inadequate in being able to rescue the airline.

Then, the Lion would ride in on a white charger, rescue Ansett and be the good guy securing the future of the Airline but also giving them total access to the trans Pacific rights Ansett held. Great in theory but beautifully protected from any loss of face with NZ as the interface if something went wrong. It did - 9/11 - 48 hours before the axe fell and Ansett was grounded.

No white knight arrived, beautiful shielded by their blind using NZ with the board members delightfully invisible. No face lost there. Now - the next move.

The rights still being the holy grail for SQ, an immediate threat arrived with the attempt by Ansett crew and staff to restart the airline with a bid from the employee group. Bid came up from the employee group and various others.

Funny thing that - the Fox - Lew bid was tentatively accepted after drawn out negotiations and the funds from the pilots/staff group and others had expended their viable funds.

Strange that the bid was then withdrawn. One of the 2 involved was at a local club 12 months later and I asked the question on how big was the payout from SQ? I am 127 kilos and was shuffled out of the way by minders of a certain person who had assumed a non healthy purple colour.

So - bottom line. SQ still want Pacific rights ex Australia. Virgin are operating trans Pacific ex Australia. The Ansett collapse failed due to 9/11. Wounds licked, now let's wait.

Any SQ members on the Virgin Australia board?

Danger Will Robinson, Danger.

Best all

EWL