Small holding in QAN (used to be 5 times bigger of course) and I...

Small holding in QAN (used to be 5 times bigger of course) and I don't pay that much attention to it now.

My view is that airlines are a bad investment generally. I lost $2000 on Compass Airlines (my first share purchase and the best thing that ever happened to me). I accepted the QAN takeover, realised it was going to fail but was stuck, wasn't able to sell and have had it since.

Current board and mgmt have to take bulk of responsibility for current problems. It is their job to navigate the regulatory framework, unions, competition, fuel prices and everything else and make a profit. They haven't and I expect them to go after they (partially) clear the decks today.

Dixon either by design or natural bias realised he had a high cost perishable product to flog and realised he had to build and maintain a strong brand. AJ has trash that on many fronts.

Livingstone realised the core value of the business and tried to sell it at a premium price. Current board have done nothing for shareholders or the company.

From here QAN has to make sure it makes a profit. That means cutting things that don't make money. If that means just flying Sydney Melbourne then so be it (an exaggeration to make a point). It has to build its brand again (including repainting every Jetstar plane as a QANTAS plane) and become the preferred carrier for every Australian and everyone who wants an Australian experience on a plane (I always fly QANTAS if it is an option and will pay a little more for this). Unions have to get relevant and realise they either get flexible or die a slow death as their jobs disappear. Govts must realise that it is not a level playingfield and should support the national carrier for gods sake.