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Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 15 Nov 2011, 23:04
by horburyflyer
I would not be surprised if the deal with IAG is more or less a done deal - the noises from VA in the last week have gone a little quiet. I personally think that for VA to purchase Bmi would be the best solution but I fear that won't happen now.

Maybe time for VA to announce they are joining the *A.

Jon

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 16 Nov 2011, 12:31
by preiffer
People keep referring to VS buying BMI...


...with what?! They simply don't have the cash.

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 22 Dec 2011, 10:11
by Sealink

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 22 Dec 2011, 10:42
by northernhenry
Scope for xmas competiton:

Which a/c will have "BA-BMI No Way" slogon...?

Guess will be lots of noise,plus some non-committing statement about joining an alliance, eventually ending up with a handfull of slots and a still independent airline through 2012

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 22 Dec 2011, 11:00
by slinky09
northernhenry wrote:Guess will be lots of noise,plus some non-committing statement about joining an alliance, eventually ending up with a handfull of slots and a still independent airline through 2012


AKA no defined strategy ... I do worry for VS.

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 22 Dec 2011, 11:42
by clarkeysntfc
slinky09 wrote:
northernhenry wrote:Guess will be lots of noise,plus some non-committing statement about joining an alliance, eventually ending up with a handfull of slots and a still independent airline through 2012


AKA no defined strategy ... I do worry for VS.


Me too... they are looking more and more rudderless.

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 22 Dec 2011, 18:38
by Sealink
Don't underestimate Branson though.
He has a knack of pulling rabbits from hats.

I do think that VS - and possibly other airlines - have ignored the sleeping giant that is BA. A giant that is now well and truly awake, revitalised and raring to go.

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 22 Dec 2011, 19:04
by clarkeysntfc
I personally don't believe that SRB has much to do with the day to day running of VS anymore, I believe it's Ridgeway's to run.

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 22 Dec 2011, 19:25
by Darren Wheeler
Give it a few months and BA will be in strike turmoil again.

When the unions hate WWW and WWW hates the unions, conflict will not be far away.

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 22 Dec 2011, 20:13
by slinky09
Sealink wrote:Don't underestimate Branson though.
He has a knack of pulling rabbits from hats.


Only if SRB takes a full interest in the airline. Ever since he stepped aside and Steve Ridgeway took full managerial control, things have gone into stasis. We've seen blunder after blunder with fleet planning, lack of any expansion, staff unrest, poor results, lack of alliance, cut cuts cuts - OK the upheavals in the global economy over the last decade since 911 have not helped, and have positively screwed things up - but other airlines are growing ?| .

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 22 Dec 2011, 22:26
by honey lamb
Darren Wheeler wrote:Give it a few months and BA will be in strike turmoil again.

When the unions hate WWW and WWW hates the unions, conflict will not be far away.

Or as Aer John, fresh from his first seven weeks with Aer Lingus referred to him today "Slasher Walsh"

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 23 Dec 2011, 01:01
by nguba
Darren Wheeler wrote:Give it a few months and BA will be in strike turmoil again.

When the unions hate WWW and WWW hates the unions, conflict will not be far away.


I don't think that's a fair comment.

WW is not anti-union. But there certain behaviours he won't tolerate.

A lot of hugely significant changes were agreed with the unions (pensions scheme changes, ground staff working practices, productivity improvements post Lehmans collapse) whilst he was CEO behind closed doors. Yes, there have been strikes from the cabin crew, but he got through significant changes in the process. And it is a fair argument that all the structural reforms he achieved has put IAG in a position to do this deal.

Remember IAG is buying bmi from its own cash balances with no reliance on external funding (which is very scant at the moment) and it's able to absorb the costs of the estimated two year restructuring to turn bmi around.

What will VS get from this? Unless it has an urge to get slots to launch routes where competition will be lessened (Moscow, Cairo etc), absolutely nothing.

Virgin has also hardly been a model of industrial relations harmony over the past few years.

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 17 Apr 2012, 14:46
by Sealink
BA pulled out of Belfast back in 2001 I think.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-17724637

Four pairs of slots of Heathrow --- no wonder BA are looking at other options! I don't think their "committment" to Belfast means anything.

This comes on top of news that Lufthansa is struggling to sell bmibaby separately - given that BA have no interest in operating a low cost airline this creates more uncertaintly for bmibaby.

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 20 Apr 2012, 10:17
by Sealink
Some reports (not article below) say that IAG may have received a discount of up to £80m on the previous £172m price tag for bmi.

This is because LH couldn't complete sale of bmibaby or bmi regional in time - and these two airlines are of no interest to IAG yet have liabilities.

Travel Weekly Article

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 20 Apr 2012, 10:54
by iforres1
Is anyone else bored with this story that has been going on for FOUR years.

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 20 Apr 2012, 11:18
by Concorde RIP
A little bored perhaps, but only because of the glacial speed, not because the topic isn't interesting.

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 20 Apr 2012, 13:19
by Sealink
BA will match status for Diamond Club members transferring to their Executive Club, with 1:1 exchange on miles to Avios.

Is that boring enough? ;-)

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 20 Apr 2012, 14:26
by iforres1
Con RIP/Sealink,

Topic is not boring, and no offence to posters, just fed up of this will VS buy or not. IMO never.
BA will be swamped with FF in the lounges now, but a nice deal if you have one :)

Iain

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 23 Apr 2012, 09:57
by Sealink
BA paid £20m for bmi

If that's true I wonder what VS offered?

Amazing bargaining from IAG nonetheless!

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 23 Apr 2012, 10:17
by Concorde RIP
BA are rubbing salt in the wounds by posting on their website and sending out emails about BMI acquisition....methinks they're rather pleased with themselves!

If IAG swallow US Air as well, VS will be even more lonely...

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 24 Apr 2012, 09:53
by clarkeysntfc
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comm ... irgin.html

Quite a pertinent article here on the BMI bid.

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 24 Apr 2012, 10:00
by Concorde RIP
That Telegraph article is indeed intersting - definitely on the (stop winge-ing and do something" camp...

A short but interesting article here
http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articl ... mi-370996/

Includes words that imply VS are still pursuing BMI slots and that the 787s (16 of them on order) will start to arive from mid 2014...

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 24 Apr 2012, 10:34
by Sealink
I definitely think that when the "sleeping giant" awoke, VS was caught napping...

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 24 Apr 2012, 12:00
by Concorde RIP
Yes, looks like that doesn't it.

Or, brinkmanship by VS that rebounded...

Re: British Midland for sale or breakup

PostPosted: 24 Apr 2012, 15:23
by preiffer
That FlightGlobal article....

"The airline will operate some of the twinjets in a "leisure configuration"."



And that is....?