[transtraxman]

This Airwise/Reuters article explains at length the “goings on” at Alitalia – very interesting – published yesterday.
“Italy Seeks Alitalia Rescue But Doubts Remain”.

http://news.airwise.com/story/view/1381447782.html

The Post Office has had its arm twisted to cough up capital for the airline but the PO wants other shareholders to do the same, something they are reluctant to do (throwing good money after bad and so on). The government wants to be seen as keeping the airline in Italian hands and not selling out on the cheap. The unions?well, what do you expect?
Expect things to happen over the weekend. And if you are a ticket holder …. ??

A much shortened version is published today by Travel Weekly.
“Postal service approached to save Alitalia”.

http://www.travelweekly.co.uk/Articles/2013/10/11/45594/postal+service+approached+to+save+alitalia.html

[AnthonyDunn]

This is, on the one hand, quite astonishing, on the other, entirely predictable. Just whose pocket is the next to be picked in order to keep AZ and its wholly non-commercial operations and practices going? And for how how much longer does Italy think that it can continue defying economic logic (and gravity)?

[AnthonyDunn]

This is, on the one hand, quite astonishing, on the other, entirely predictable. Just whose pocket is the next to be picked in order to keep AZ and its wholly non-commercial operations and practices going? And for how how much longer does Italy think that it can continue defying economic logic (and gravity)?

[LuganoPirate]

I don’t think Italians really care if AZ lives or not. They realise the inefficiencies and overstaffing can never make them profitable and will anyway fly a foreign airline in preference to AZ.

KOn top of this AZ virtually abandoned Milan, leaving the road open to the likes of LX, BA, QR, EK and so on. Northern Italy is where the money is and the Milanese were really put out by this move which forced them to fly via Rome if they wanted to go anywhere, which they weren’t prepared to do, preferring to fly direct with another airline or via FRA, ZRH or London if they had to make a connection.

Crisis meeting today I believe, but unless the government coughs up, which technically they can’t, it will be Arriverderci Alitalia with not many tears bring shed.

[AnthonyDunn]

From today’s Financial Times:

Alitalia, Italy’s lossmaking national carrier, has averted a second bankruptcy in four years by agreeing a €300m capital increase that will bring in Poste Italiane, the state-owned postal services group, as a new shareholder. After a meeting on Friday that lasted more than four hours, members of the Alitalia board said that the plan had been supported by all existing shareholders, including Air France-KLM.

Full details of the agreement were not immediately available, but a person involved in the negotiations said that Poste Italiane committed to investing up to €75m, giving it a stake of about 15 per cent. Before the meeting an Alitalia official said that the plan involved a capital increase plus new bank loans of up to €200m.

AZ must have expended more lives than your average cat. And just how many bailouts has it now had?!

[LuganoPirate]

And how many more bailouts to come Anthony? This is nothing more than a sticking plaster, albeit a very big one, but I question if Post Italy’s investment will be seen as State Aid and prohibited by the EU?

[LuganoPirate]

And how many more bailouts to come Anthony? This is nothing more than a sticking plaster, albeit a very big one, but I question if Post Italy’s investment will be seen as State Aid and prohibited by the EU?

[capetonianm]

Of course it’s state aid. It’s all smoke and mirrors and the Bungling Bureauprats of Brussels EU will turn a blind eye as long as it suits them.

Redefining the degree of curvature of cucumbers and facilitating the free movement of criminals is of greater importance to them than who keeps an insolvent moribund airline flying.

[Edski777]

Gee, Capetonianm another Sunday full of frustrations?
If you don’t have anything sensible to report then please don’t mess up a polite and interesting discussion on this forum. I’m sure there are other fora where you and your UKIP friends can fume about the EU and reap in the benefits at the same time.

[capetonianm]

Sorry Edski if you don’t agree with my views, you’re perfectly entitled to disagree and I am neither surprised nor annoyed that this is the case, but there’s no need to descend to rudeness and crass assumptions.

I am sure though that it will give you immense satisfaction to learn that I am a UKIP member, and proudly so.

As an aside, I do not ‘reap any benefits’ from the EU.

[FormerlyDoS]

Come on guys, let’s keep the politics out of it 🙂

[MarcusUK]

On the subject…
Alitalia need a new Management Team and a strategy in immediate terms, and a medium term Strategy to be effective.
Clearly, the Airline is not being run profitably, and Change IS needed, stubborn as the Multi Shareholders maybe!.
It is simply shocking to see the amount of shareholders!

It need a greater well organised and resourced Airline Partner.
KLM/ AF seem very reluctant to stretch out further, and dealing with their own effective turnaround strategy, is enough at the moment.
Perhaps Etihad will step in?

Otherwise, this situation is deemed to repeat itself within a matter of months again…
The Fact remains, it is not being run as an effective business. That needs to change, somehow.

[transtraxman]

The Reuters article, I mentioned before, is most interesting. Basically it blames Berlusconi for interfering and pandering to the employees. The strategy chosen has been proven wrong – concentrating on short and medium haul routes – where the company has been most vulnerable to Ryanair and Easyjet. Now it wants to increase its long-haul presence.

AF/KL would be delighted to take over Alitalia, but only on its own terms – i.e. radical cost cutting (routes and personnel – especially back office ) but something more drastic than what Iberia is trying to do. That, however, would bring the management head-to-head with the unions, something which AF/KL is not in a strong position to do.

The White Knight will come from the Gulf – Etihad? It is sitting on the sidelines awaiting events and could be a strong possibility.

We will see in the next few weeks.

[transtraxman]

It seems that everything hangs in the balance with the shareholders meeting today, Monday.
Published yesterday by Airwise/Reuters.
“Air France-KLM’s Position Unclear On Alitalia”

http://news.airwise.com/story/view/1381707938.html

[MarcusUK]

The latest on the ongoing issue…

IAG et al, concerning “State Aid”, and the discussions of AF being the first option to partner with them, but they will require tight specific conditions.On the KLM Management side, they are opposed to it…

http://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/italy-defends-alitalia-iag-slams-235448081.html

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