sales techniques per client retention...succede per moltissime compagnie ed in tutti i settori
Thread British Airways-Iberia: firmata la fusione dei due vettori
- Autore Discussione billypaul
- Data d'inizio
Eh ma se il cambio è quello che dicono nell'articolo (nota lo strafalcione) significa che 1€ = 896£, dici che con 100.000 euro qualcosina me la posso permettere?si beato te...peccato che i prezzi non sono scesi affatto come prevedevano, anche perche' in molti da mo che ci hanno pensato...
Eh ma se il cambio è quello che dicono nell'articolo (nota lo strafalcione) significa che 1€ = 896£, dici che con 100.000 euro qualcosina me la posso permettere?
Neanche un garage a Peckham
OT
Tipo BT quando chiami 'minacciando' di passare a TalkTalk e dopo pochi minuti ti richiama il team leader di turno offrendoti uno sconto sul canone mensile
La concorrenza di U2 e FR ha svuotato tutti i voli corto-medio raggio di BA del P2P, molto di più di quanto sia successo in Italia, Francia o Spagna. A questo da sommare tutto quello che avete postato voi.
Non sono mica d'accordo: i voli sono ancora piuttosto pieni ed il p2p resiste ancora.
Poi questo non è iniziato con la crisi ma era in atto già da prima e BA macinava utili impressionanti.
La crisi per BA ha significato un crollo netto di pax premium, soprattutto sul suo mercato principale (transAtlantico) ed il crollo delli yield su tutti i mercati.
Aggiungici una flotta di 56 747 che non sono nuovissimi ed efficientissimi e vengono fuori i dolori.
Se continuano così, invece accadrà proprio quello e nuppure tra moltissimo tempo.
Il semestre è aprile-settembre: l'alta stagione !!!
All' annuncio della perdita record, segue anche quello di ulteriori licenziamenti che, stando alle indiscrezioni, saranno complessivamente circa 5.000 entro marzo 2010.
BA to cut 1,200 jobs amid losses
British Airways says it plans to cut a further 1,200 jobs after reporting a first-half loss for the first time.
The job loss announcement means the airline will have shed a total of 4,900 positions by March 2010.
The company suffered a loss before tax of £292m ($485m) for the six months to the end of September, compared with profits of £52m a year earlier.
The first half of BA's financial year is usually stronger because it covers the summer holiday season.
BA said revenue over the six-month period was down 13.7% to £4.1bn, compared with £4.75bn in 2008.
"Aviation remains in recession with revenue likely to be £1bn lower this year," said BA chief executive Willie Walsh.
He told the BBC that this had been the "most difficult year in the history of the aviation industry".
"All airlines are facing the same pressure. Operational changes at British Airways are absolutely necessary to improve the performance of the business," he said.
BA has already achieved 1,900 global job reductions by natural wastage, voluntary redundancies and reduced overtime.
Strike ballot
BA is currently in a battle with unions over changes to jobs and pay. It wants to cut the number of cabin crew staff on its long-haul flights from 15 to 14, with the change coming into effect on 16 November.
The company is also proposing a two-year pay freeze. It says the changes are essential to its survival.
On Thursday, the Unite union said it would continue with a strike ballot of British Airways cabin staff over the changes, despite its legal challenge to the new working patterns being delayed.
Unite had sought a High Court injunction to have the changes blocked, but the full trial will now not go ahead until 1 February.
Unite said staff would "unwillingly" work the new schedules from this month but it would still ballot for a strike. The result of the strike vote will be known on 14 December.
Analysts said the latest figures could be used as ammunition by the union.
"These weak results will underscore their fragility to unions opposed to wholesale restructuring that is required if BA aims to survive this downturn," said Saj Ahmad from Gerson Lehrman Group.
Shares in BA closed higher, up 6.7% to 198.8 pence, as the market welcomed news of the extra job cuts and measures to reduce costs.
BA said its half-year operating costs were down 8.7%, despite the weakening of the pound, and fuel costs were also lower by 17.8% compared with the same period last year.
Pension scheme
BA's half-year results revealed a growing problem with its two final-salary pension schemes.
Both are now closed to new joiners, but although the older scheme (APS) now consists mainly of BA pensioners, just under half of the 70,000 members in the newer scheme (NAPS) are still working for the airline.
In the past six months, the surplus in the older APS scheme fell from £860m to £27m while the deficit in the NAPS scheme ballooned from £1.167bn to £2.66bn.
The value of the assets in both schemes rose, largely due to this year's huge rebound in share prices.
But this has been outstripped by the rising cost of paying for the pensions once they come into payment.
The BA pension scheme trustees, in their interim valuation, have assumed that the scheme's assets will earn a smaller income in the future.
The implication is that BA will have to increase the already large deficit payments it makes to its final-salary schemes, which it is obliged to do to ensure that they eventually return to balance.
A spokeswoman for the airline said it was currently paying in £335m per year into APS and NAPS, and that over the past three years, the company has paid in £1.8bn to cover its current payments and the deficit.
Fonte:
bbc.co.uk
BA to cut 1,200 jobs amid losses
British Airways says it plans to cut a further 1,200 jobs after reporting a first-half loss for the first time.
The job loss announcement means the airline will have shed a total of 4,900 positions by March 2010.
The company suffered a loss before tax of £292m ($485m) for the six months to the end of September, compared with profits of £52m a year earlier.
The first half of BA's financial year is usually stronger because it covers the summer holiday season.
BA said revenue over the six-month period was down 13.7% to £4.1bn, compared with £4.75bn in 2008.
"Aviation remains in recession with revenue likely to be £1bn lower this year," said BA chief executive Willie Walsh.
He told the BBC that this had been the "most difficult year in the history of the aviation industry".
"All airlines are facing the same pressure. Operational changes at British Airways are absolutely necessary to improve the performance of the business," he said.
BA has already achieved 1,900 global job reductions by natural wastage, voluntary redundancies and reduced overtime.
Strike ballot
BA is currently in a battle with unions over changes to jobs and pay. It wants to cut the number of cabin crew staff on its long-haul flights from 15 to 14, with the change coming into effect on 16 November.
The company is also proposing a two-year pay freeze. It says the changes are essential to its survival.
On Thursday, the Unite union said it would continue with a strike ballot of British Airways cabin staff over the changes, despite its legal challenge to the new working patterns being delayed.
Unite had sought a High Court injunction to have the changes blocked, but the full trial will now not go ahead until 1 February.
Unite said staff would "unwillingly" work the new schedules from this month but it would still ballot for a strike. The result of the strike vote will be known on 14 December.
Analysts said the latest figures could be used as ammunition by the union.
"These weak results will underscore their fragility to unions opposed to wholesale restructuring that is required if BA aims to survive this downturn," said Saj Ahmad from Gerson Lehrman Group.
Shares in BA closed higher, up 6.7% to 198.8 pence, as the market welcomed news of the extra job cuts and measures to reduce costs.
BA said its half-year operating costs were down 8.7%, despite the weakening of the pound, and fuel costs were also lower by 17.8% compared with the same period last year.
Pension scheme
BA's half-year results revealed a growing problem with its two final-salary pension schemes.
Both are now closed to new joiners, but although the older scheme (APS) now consists mainly of BA pensioners, just under half of the 70,000 members in the newer scheme (NAPS) are still working for the airline.
In the past six months, the surplus in the older APS scheme fell from £860m to £27m while the deficit in the NAPS scheme ballooned from £1.167bn to £2.66bn.
The value of the assets in both schemes rose, largely due to this year's huge rebound in share prices.
But this has been outstripped by the rising cost of paying for the pensions once they come into payment.
The BA pension scheme trustees, in their interim valuation, have assumed that the scheme's assets will earn a smaller income in the future.
The implication is that BA will have to increase the already large deficit payments it makes to its final-salary schemes, which it is obliged to do to ensure that they eventually return to balance.
A spokeswoman for the airline said it was currently paying in £335m per year into APS and NAPS, and that over the past three years, the company has paid in £1.8bn to cover its current payments and the deficit.
Fonte:
bbc.co.uk
British Airways ed Iberia vicine alla fusione
British Airways and Iberia move closer to landing merger deal
British Airways is closing in on its long-awaited merger with Iberia, the Spanish flag carrier. An annoucement could be made as early as Friday, according to Sky News, although sources last night cautioned that any deal could still fall through.
British Airways said last night that “talks were continuing”. Iberia refused to comment.
Under the terms of the potential deal, Willie Walsh, British Airways’ chief executive, is widely expected to become chief executive of the enlarged group and Iberia’s chariman, Antonio Vazquez Romero, would become chairman. It would be listed in London and Madrid and both the BA and Iberia brands would be retained. It is thought the headquarters could be in Spain rather than England.
A deal would cap 16 months of fraught negotiations in which the two sides have encountered many problems.
The airlines started merger talks in July 2008 in response to a severe reduction in passenger numbers.
Among the problems facing the two carriers is BA’s pension fund deficit, which is thought to be about £3 billion. The carriers have also struggled to agree to a corporate structure and how much each set of shareholders will own in the new company.
The deal could be announced when Iberia reports its results on Friday. Analysts expect the Spanish airline to report a nine-month operating loss of €320 million (£289 million) after aggressive cost cutting failed to offset falling air travel demand.
BA reported record losses last week and predicted revenue would slump by £1 billion this year but said business was stabilising and hinted at a decision on the proposed merger with Iberia “in the very near future”.
Separately, British Midland (bmi) may struggle to raise the £95 million in funding it needs to keep flying because potential buyers have become thin on the ground for its Heathrow landing slots. A number of the world’s leading airlines have expressed little or no interest in bmi’s firesale, even though slots at the world’s busiest international airport have traded for tens of millions of dollars apiece in the past.
The Derby-based airline said this week that it needed to raise £190 million in additional funding by the end of October next year to survive.
Lufthansa, the German flag carrier, which took control of bmi this year, has pledged £95 million in loans. The remainder is to come from the sale or lease of landing slots.
Bmi, which employs 4,800 people, said that it was in “significantly advanced talks with several airlines” to sell slots. However, this has come as a surprise to many of the obvious buyers. British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Emirates and several other Gulf carriers are not thought to be in talks with bmi over its slots. The American carriers are also understood to have little interest because they are trying to conserve cash. Analysts speculated that bmi may get interest from an Asian carrier, such as Air China, but only if the slots are sold at a bargain price.
In the airline’s most recent accounts, its directors warned that uncertainty over the slot sale cast doubt on the company’s ability to continue as a going concern next year.
Source:
timesonline.co.uk
British Airways and Iberia move closer to landing merger deal
British Airways is closing in on its long-awaited merger with Iberia, the Spanish flag carrier. An annoucement could be made as early as Friday, according to Sky News, although sources last night cautioned that any deal could still fall through.
British Airways said last night that “talks were continuing”. Iberia refused to comment.
Under the terms of the potential deal, Willie Walsh, British Airways’ chief executive, is widely expected to become chief executive of the enlarged group and Iberia’s chariman, Antonio Vazquez Romero, would become chairman. It would be listed in London and Madrid and both the BA and Iberia brands would be retained. It is thought the headquarters could be in Spain rather than England.
A deal would cap 16 months of fraught negotiations in which the two sides have encountered many problems.
The airlines started merger talks in July 2008 in response to a severe reduction in passenger numbers.
Among the problems facing the two carriers is BA’s pension fund deficit, which is thought to be about £3 billion. The carriers have also struggled to agree to a corporate structure and how much each set of shareholders will own in the new company.
The deal could be announced when Iberia reports its results on Friday. Analysts expect the Spanish airline to report a nine-month operating loss of €320 million (£289 million) after aggressive cost cutting failed to offset falling air travel demand.
BA reported record losses last week and predicted revenue would slump by £1 billion this year but said business was stabilising and hinted at a decision on the proposed merger with Iberia “in the very near future”.
Separately, British Midland (bmi) may struggle to raise the £95 million in funding it needs to keep flying because potential buyers have become thin on the ground for its Heathrow landing slots. A number of the world’s leading airlines have expressed little or no interest in bmi’s firesale, even though slots at the world’s busiest international airport have traded for tens of millions of dollars apiece in the past.
The Derby-based airline said this week that it needed to raise £190 million in additional funding by the end of October next year to survive.
Lufthansa, the German flag carrier, which took control of bmi this year, has pledged £95 million in loans. The remainder is to come from the sale or lease of landing slots.
Bmi, which employs 4,800 people, said that it was in “significantly advanced talks with several airlines” to sell slots. However, this has come as a surprise to many of the obvious buyers. British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Emirates and several other Gulf carriers are not thought to be in talks with bmi over its slots. The American carriers are also understood to have little interest because they are trying to conserve cash. Analysts speculated that bmi may get interest from an Asian carrier, such as Air China, but only if the slots are sold at a bargain price.
In the airline’s most recent accounts, its directors warned that uncertainty over the slot sale cast doubt on the company’s ability to continue as a going concern next year.
Source:
timesonline.co.uk
Conosco i prezzi di Londra, ma con 896 milioni di sterline mi compro il nuovo palazzo di 1, Knightsbridge.Neanche un garage a Peckham
Certo che BA sembra messa proprio male...
In Spagna vige una legge, su cui la UE farebbe bene ad indagare, che concede forti vantaggi fiscali se la società che nasce da una fusione internazionale sceglie di avere il quartier generale in Spagna.
Interessante - e comunque Sky News che ha divulgato la notizia in anteprima stamane non ne ha fatto alcun riferimento.
Grazie dell' info anyway.
BA shares soar as merger with Iberia nears
David Robertson (timesonline)
British Airways (BA) and Iberia, the Spanish flag carrier, both saw their share prices soar this morning amid speculation that the airlines were close to announcing a merger.
Iberia's shares rose 10 per cent to €2.18 while BA's climbed 8 per cent to 215.2p as investors reacted to rumours in Madrid that an announcement was imminent.
In response to the share price gains, BA confirmed that the boards of both airlines would meet separately today to consider the deal. However, it added that no decision had been taken.
The airlines have been in talks about a merger since last July but there have been a number of sticking points.
These included BA's anticipated pension deficit of £3 billion and how much each set of shareholders should own of the combined group.
Willie Walsh, BA's chief executive, is expected to head the group with Antonio Vazquez Romero, the chief executive of Iberia, becoming its chairman.
Both airlines will continue to operate under their existing brands within a parent company.
BA's statement said: "Further to recent market speculation, British Airways confirms that the British Airways and Iberia Boards are holding separate meetings today, 12 November, to consider a potential transaction. However, no decisions have been taken and, at this time, there can be no guarantee that a transaction will be forthcoming. A further announcement will be made in due course, if appropriate."
David Robertson (timesonline)
British Airways (BA) and Iberia, the Spanish flag carrier, both saw their share prices soar this morning amid speculation that the airlines were close to announcing a merger.
Iberia's shares rose 10 per cent to €2.18 while BA's climbed 8 per cent to 215.2p as investors reacted to rumours in Madrid that an announcement was imminent.
In response to the share price gains, BA confirmed that the boards of both airlines would meet separately today to consider the deal. However, it added that no decision had been taken.
The airlines have been in talks about a merger since last July but there have been a number of sticking points.
These included BA's anticipated pension deficit of £3 billion and how much each set of shareholders should own of the combined group.
Willie Walsh, BA's chief executive, is expected to head the group with Antonio Vazquez Romero, the chief executive of Iberia, becoming its chairman.
Both airlines will continue to operate under their existing brands within a parent company.
BA's statement said: "Further to recent market speculation, British Airways confirms that the British Airways and Iberia Boards are holding separate meetings today, 12 November, to consider a potential transaction. However, no decisions have been taken and, at this time, there can be no guarantee that a transaction will be forthcoming. A further announcement will be made in due course, if appropriate."
British-Iberia, è fusione
così dice libero
Iberia e British Airways
È fusione
12/11/2009
Iberia ha accettato le condizioni imposte da British Airways per formalizzare la fusione fra le due compagnie. British Airways controllerà il 55% delle azioni della nuova società, mentre Iberia il restante 45%. Questa mattina la convocazione straordaria del Consiglio amministrativo di Iberia ha fatto schizzare al 7% i titoli in borsa della compagnia. Antonio Vazquez, presidente di Iberia, dovrebbe essere il presidente della nuova holding, mentre Willie Walsh sarà il consigliere delegato
http://www.libero-news.it/pills/view/24585
così dice libero
Iberia e British Airways
È fusione
12/11/2009
Iberia ha accettato le condizioni imposte da British Airways per formalizzare la fusione fra le due compagnie. British Airways controllerà il 55% delle azioni della nuova società, mentre Iberia il restante 45%. Questa mattina la convocazione straordaria del Consiglio amministrativo di Iberia ha fatto schizzare al 7% i titoli in borsa della compagnia. Antonio Vazquez, presidente di Iberia, dovrebbe essere il presidente della nuova holding, mentre Willie Walsh sarà il consigliere delegato
http://www.libero-news.it/pills/view/24585
Fusione in vista tra BA e IB
LONDRA (GRAN BRETAGNA) - Si avvia al compimento la prevista e sofferta fusione tra British Airways e l'Iberia. In base all'accordo raggiunto, la società che nascerà dalla fusione fra Iberia a British Airways sarà controllata per il 55% dagli azionisti della compagnia aerea inglese e per il 45% da quelli della compagnia spagnola. Le due società prevedono di completare la fusione entro il 2010.
L'INTESA - L’accordo definitivo sarà soggetto però all’approvazione degli azionisti e delle autorità competenti: inoltre, la compagnia spagnola si riserva l’opzione di recedere dall’intesa se British Airways non raggiungerà un accordo soddisfacente per la gestione del suo fondo pensioni, in pesante deficit. L'amministratore delegato di British Airways, Willy Walsh, sarà l'amministratore delegato del nuovo gruppo, mentre il presidente di Iberia Antonio Vazquez ne sarà presidente. La sede operativa della compagnia, che diventerà la terza del mondo, sarà Londra.
GLI AZIONISTI - In ogni caso le due compagnie aeree dovrebbero mantenere i propri marchi ed una gestione separata, mentre il nuovo cda, così come il numero di dirigenti, sarà spartito in parti uguali. Per il giornale spagnolo «Expansion», Caja Madrid, attuale maggior azionista di Iberia con il 23%, manterrà la posizione di primo azionista anche della nuova holding, con circa l'11.5% delle azioni, seguita da BlackRock con il 6.2%, da Lloyds Banking Group 3,3%, Sepi 2,7%, Legal & General 2,4%, Capital Group 1,9% ed El Corte Inglès 1,8%.
(www.corriere.it)
LONDRA (GRAN BRETAGNA) - Si avvia al compimento la prevista e sofferta fusione tra British Airways e l'Iberia. In base all'accordo raggiunto, la società che nascerà dalla fusione fra Iberia a British Airways sarà controllata per il 55% dagli azionisti della compagnia aerea inglese e per il 45% da quelli della compagnia spagnola. Le due società prevedono di completare la fusione entro il 2010.
L'INTESA - L’accordo definitivo sarà soggetto però all’approvazione degli azionisti e delle autorità competenti: inoltre, la compagnia spagnola si riserva l’opzione di recedere dall’intesa se British Airways non raggiungerà un accordo soddisfacente per la gestione del suo fondo pensioni, in pesante deficit. L'amministratore delegato di British Airways, Willy Walsh, sarà l'amministratore delegato del nuovo gruppo, mentre il presidente di Iberia Antonio Vazquez ne sarà presidente. La sede operativa della compagnia, che diventerà la terza del mondo, sarà Londra.
GLI AZIONISTI - In ogni caso le due compagnie aeree dovrebbero mantenere i propri marchi ed una gestione separata, mentre il nuovo cda, così come il numero di dirigenti, sarà spartito in parti uguali. Per il giornale spagnolo «Expansion», Caja Madrid, attuale maggior azionista di Iberia con il 23%, manterrà la posizione di primo azionista anche della nuova holding, con circa l'11.5% delle azioni, seguita da BlackRock con il 6.2%, da Lloyds Banking Group 3,3%, Sepi 2,7%, Legal & General 2,4%, Capital Group 1,9% ed El Corte Inglès 1,8%.
(www.corriere.it)
Per la fusione da completare entro il 2010, holding da 5 mld
(ANSA) - NEW YORK, 12 nov - Accordo fra Iberia e British Airways per la fusione da completare entro il 2010 e che porta alla nascita di un gigante dei cieli. La fusione portera' alla creazione di una nuova holding, la TopCo, da circa cinque miliardi di euro, che controllera' le due compagnie aeree e sara' controllata per il 55% da British Airways e per il restante 45% da Iberia. La societa' sara' cosi' la terza compagnia aerea europea con una flotta di 419 aerei.
(ANSA) - NEW YORK, 12 nov - Accordo fra Iberia e British Airways per la fusione da completare entro il 2010 e che porta alla nascita di un gigante dei cieli. La fusione portera' alla creazione di una nuova holding, la TopCo, da circa cinque miliardi di euro, che controllera' le due compagnie aeree e sara' controllata per il 55% da British Airways e per il restante 45% da Iberia. La societa' sara' cosi' la terza compagnia aerea europea con una flotta di 419 aerei.
Iberia e British Airways hanno firmato in serata un protocollo di accordo per la fusione dei due vettori: lo ha annunciato la compagnia di bandiera spagnola, che ha definito l'intesa "vincolante". L'accordo definitivo dovrebbe essere firmato entro il primo trimestre del 2010, soggetto però all'approvazione degli azionisti e delle autorità competenti: inoltre, la compagnia spagnola si riserva l'opzione di recedere dall'intesa se Ba non raggiungerà un accordo soddisfacente per la gestione del suo fondo pensioni, in pesante deficit.
Secondo quanto anticipato dal quotidiano spagnolo El Pais la nuova holding - terza compagnia aerea del mondo - verrebbe partecipata al 45% da Iberia e al 55% da Ba: la sede verrebbe stabilita a Londra e presidente verrebbe nominato l'attuale presidente di Iberia, Antonio Vazquez, mentre l'ad di Ba, Willie Walsh, ricoprirebbe il medesimo incarico nel nuovo cda. I due vettori - in difficoltà finanziarie - manterranno i propri marchi e una gestione autonoma. Attualmente Iberia è il primo azionista del vettore britannico, con il 10% del pacchetto azionario; viceversa, Ba è il secondo azionista della compagnia spagnola con il 13,5% delle azioni.
12 NOVEMBRE 2009
© RIPRODUZIONE RISERVATA
Sole24
Secondo quanto anticipato dal quotidiano spagnolo El Pais la nuova holding - terza compagnia aerea del mondo - verrebbe partecipata al 45% da Iberia e al 55% da Ba: la sede verrebbe stabilita a Londra e presidente verrebbe nominato l'attuale presidente di Iberia, Antonio Vazquez, mentre l'ad di Ba, Willie Walsh, ricoprirebbe il medesimo incarico nel nuovo cda. I due vettori - in difficoltà finanziarie - manterranno i propri marchi e una gestione autonoma. Attualmente Iberia è il primo azionista del vettore britannico, con il 10% del pacchetto azionario; viceversa, Ba è il secondo azionista della compagnia spagnola con il 13,5% delle azioni.
12 NOVEMBRE 2009
© RIPRODUZIONE RISERVATA
Sole24
BA, Iberia reach merger MOU; BA to control 55%, Walsh to be CEO
Friday November 13, 2009
British Airways and Iberia yesterday agreed to a "binding" MOU to merge under a single holding company that will be 55% controlled by BA shareholders and led by BA CEO Willie Walsh, paving the way for establishment of a third major European airline company by the end of 2010 that would have annual revenue of about €15 billion ($22.5 billion), a fleet of 419 aircraft and a route network comprising 205 destinations.
The proposed new holding company, to be called TopCo, will be created through an all-share transaction in which BA shareholders will receive one new share for every existing BA share and IB shareholders will receive 1.0205 new shares for each existing IB share. TopCo will be incorporated in Spain and board and shareholder meetings will occur in Madrid with IB Chairman and CEO Antonio Vazquez serving as chairman and BA Chairman Martin Broughton serving as deputy chairman. The company's operating and financial headquarters will be in London, where "principal management functions" will be handled under Walsh's guidance. TopCo's shares will be traded on the London Stock Exchange.
Walsh long has pushed for the combination, arguing that BA and IB need "enhanced scale" to compete with Air France KLM and an expanding Lufthansa Group (ATWOnline, Oct. 15). "The merger will create a European airline well able to compete in the 21st century," he said, adding that "both airlines will retain their brands and heritage while achieving significant synergies as a combined force."
The carriers claimed the merger will create annual synergies of around €400 million and noted that BA will gain access to as many as 59 new destinations, including 13 in Latin America, while IB will have access to up to 98 new airports. They argued that TopCo will have a "highly complementary network fit worldwide, in particular combining British Airways' strong presence in North America, Asia/Pacific and Africa with Iberia's strong Latin America presence," and will benefit by "optimizing the dual hubs of London and Madrid."
BA and IB are aiming to sign a definitive merger agreement in the 2010 first quarter, present the transaction for shareholder approval next November and formally combine the following month. The deal is subject to relevant regulatory approvals and IB "will be entitled to terminate the merger agreement if the outcome of discussions between British Airways and its pension trustees is not, in Iberia's reasonable opinion, satisfactory." Under terms of the merger MOU, neither IB nor TopCo can fund BA pension schemes.
BA said in July it had agreed to terms with the trustees of its defined benefit pension programs "to release some bank guarantees back to the airline," freeing "up to" £330 million ($550.4 million) in bank facilities (ATWOnline, July 20).
The airlines said that for at least five years after merging, both will "keep their main base in their home country," TopCo's strategy will reflect "the importance of both London and Madrid hubs," networks operated from each hub will be "balanced" and labor relations will be handled "locally." Work actions by cabin crew in recent days have forced IB to cancel hundreds of flights. Unions representing the workers said yesterday that additional work actions will take place on Nov. 30, Dec. 2 and Dec. 14-18.
While Walsh will serve as TopCo CEO, BA CFO Keith Williams will become CEO of British Airways OpCo and IB COO Rafael Sanchez-Lozano will become CEO of Iberia OpCo
by Aaron Karp
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=18483
Friday November 13, 2009
British Airways and Iberia yesterday agreed to a "binding" MOU to merge under a single holding company that will be 55% controlled by BA shareholders and led by BA CEO Willie Walsh, paving the way for establishment of a third major European airline company by the end of 2010 that would have annual revenue of about €15 billion ($22.5 billion), a fleet of 419 aircraft and a route network comprising 205 destinations.
The proposed new holding company, to be called TopCo, will be created through an all-share transaction in which BA shareholders will receive one new share for every existing BA share and IB shareholders will receive 1.0205 new shares for each existing IB share. TopCo will be incorporated in Spain and board and shareholder meetings will occur in Madrid with IB Chairman and CEO Antonio Vazquez serving as chairman and BA Chairman Martin Broughton serving as deputy chairman. The company's operating and financial headquarters will be in London, where "principal management functions" will be handled under Walsh's guidance. TopCo's shares will be traded on the London Stock Exchange.
Walsh long has pushed for the combination, arguing that BA and IB need "enhanced scale" to compete with Air France KLM and an expanding Lufthansa Group (ATWOnline, Oct. 15). "The merger will create a European airline well able to compete in the 21st century," he said, adding that "both airlines will retain their brands and heritage while achieving significant synergies as a combined force."
The carriers claimed the merger will create annual synergies of around €400 million and noted that BA will gain access to as many as 59 new destinations, including 13 in Latin America, while IB will have access to up to 98 new airports. They argued that TopCo will have a "highly complementary network fit worldwide, in particular combining British Airways' strong presence in North America, Asia/Pacific and Africa with Iberia's strong Latin America presence," and will benefit by "optimizing the dual hubs of London and Madrid."
BA and IB are aiming to sign a definitive merger agreement in the 2010 first quarter, present the transaction for shareholder approval next November and formally combine the following month. The deal is subject to relevant regulatory approvals and IB "will be entitled to terminate the merger agreement if the outcome of discussions between British Airways and its pension trustees is not, in Iberia's reasonable opinion, satisfactory." Under terms of the merger MOU, neither IB nor TopCo can fund BA pension schemes.
BA said in July it had agreed to terms with the trustees of its defined benefit pension programs "to release some bank guarantees back to the airline," freeing "up to" £330 million ($550.4 million) in bank facilities (ATWOnline, July 20).
The airlines said that for at least five years after merging, both will "keep their main base in their home country," TopCo's strategy will reflect "the importance of both London and Madrid hubs," networks operated from each hub will be "balanced" and labor relations will be handled "locally." Work actions by cabin crew in recent days have forced IB to cancel hundreds of flights. Unions representing the workers said yesterday that additional work actions will take place on Nov. 30, Dec. 2 and Dec. 14-18.
While Walsh will serve as TopCo CEO, BA CFO Keith Williams will become CEO of British Airways OpCo and IB COO Rafael Sanchez-Lozano will become CEO of Iberia OpCo
by Aaron Karp
http://www.atwonline.com/news/story.html?storyID=18483
British Airways
Published: November 13 2009 09:02 | Last updated: November 13 2009 09:02
Lex
The Financial Times
It is going to be crowded in the cockpit. After a year and a half of merger discussions, British Airways and Iberia have managed to duck almost all the hard questions. Leave aside the fact that they have failed to come up with a compromise name for the holding company that will federate the two national flagcarriers. TopCo hardly gets the show off to a flying start, but will do fine for now. The real problems are with governance. This is the messiest structure since the earlier days of EADS, with much the same potential for in-fighting along national lines. The entity will have no fewer than three boards, each of which will be divided equally between representatives of the two airlines.
Willie Walsh has as expected snared the chief executive’s job, albeit perhaps at the expense of this being a Spanish incorporated sociedad anónima, but his authority will be circumscribed by a cumbersome governance structure that will be an impediment to his ability to change working practices among heavily unionised workforces in both countries. Iberia cancelled 368 flights on Wednesday, the second day of a two-day strike by cabin attendants. Unions representing its cabin crew have promised eight more days of strikes. BA cabin staff may soon join them. The urgent need for action has been underlined by BA’s half-year loss before tax of £292m, almost three-quarters what it lost in the year to March, and by Iberia’s announcement this morning of a €182m net loss in the nine months to September, compared to a profit of €51m in the same period last year.
The negotiations have also done little to resolve the outstanding issue of BA’s calamitous pension deficit. Iberia’s shareholders have a get-out clause from the merger agreement if the outcome of the discussions between BA and its pension trustees is, in Iberia’s reasonable opinion, materially detrimental to the economic premises of the proposed merger. Although the promised £400m of annual synergies by year five will help boost cashflows, there is no prospect of Iberia or TopCo offering any guarantee, cash or credit facilities to fund the BA pension hole. There is much work to be done before Iberiba gets airborne.
Published: November 13 2009 09:02 | Last updated: November 13 2009 09:02
Lex
The Financial Times
It is going to be crowded in the cockpit. After a year and a half of merger discussions, British Airways and Iberia have managed to duck almost all the hard questions. Leave aside the fact that they have failed to come up with a compromise name for the holding company that will federate the two national flagcarriers. TopCo hardly gets the show off to a flying start, but will do fine for now. The real problems are with governance. This is the messiest structure since the earlier days of EADS, with much the same potential for in-fighting along national lines. The entity will have no fewer than three boards, each of which will be divided equally between representatives of the two airlines.
Willie Walsh has as expected snared the chief executive’s job, albeit perhaps at the expense of this being a Spanish incorporated sociedad anónima, but his authority will be circumscribed by a cumbersome governance structure that will be an impediment to his ability to change working practices among heavily unionised workforces in both countries. Iberia cancelled 368 flights on Wednesday, the second day of a two-day strike by cabin attendants. Unions representing its cabin crew have promised eight more days of strikes. BA cabin staff may soon join them. The urgent need for action has been underlined by BA’s half-year loss before tax of £292m, almost three-quarters what it lost in the year to March, and by Iberia’s announcement this morning of a €182m net loss in the nine months to September, compared to a profit of €51m in the same period last year.
The negotiations have also done little to resolve the outstanding issue of BA’s calamitous pension deficit. Iberia’s shareholders have a get-out clause from the merger agreement if the outcome of the discussions between BA and its pension trustees is, in Iberia’s reasonable opinion, materially detrimental to the economic premises of the proposed merger. Although the promised £400m of annual synergies by year five will help boost cashflows, there is no prospect of Iberia or TopCo offering any guarantee, cash or credit facilities to fund the BA pension hole. There is much work to be done before Iberiba gets airborne.
C'è qualcuno in grado di fare un quadro sintetico di raffronto omogeneo tra i tre gruppi BA-IB, AF-KL e LH-LX-SN-OS in termini di fatturato, utili, pax, numero di destinazioni ecc.(naturalmente senza perderci mezza gironata)?
daniele,milano
daniele,milano