This is a highly competitive industry and profit margins are small.Qantas is half owned by British Airways.We subsidise too many bureaucrats and pollies in this country anyway,let alone a so called national carrier that could go belly up in the near future.

Why not back innovative Australian inventions that we see time again go off shore,or are all our Govts too stupid to be able to assess their real worth?

Lindsay,
Please be a little more tough minded. The game plan was to take Qantas offshore to China, estblish a hub operation and become a major international player free of the constaints of Australian unions.The unlovely Dixon and Mansfield cooked up this little scheme and took some members of the Q board with them, others with the intellectual capacity of a cane toad, such as Cosgrove, go along.
The question is how deeply involved are Howard and Costello?
Certainly Dixon has kept them advised, how deeply might later prove of interest, but they know enough to have given the nod. Dixon has told them that Q will remain based in Australia and that all profits will pass through Australia - oh yeah.
It's the AWB all over again. The Govt. agreeing to, perhaps assisting
a course of action that they believe will advance the national interest according to their own philosophy and interests.
They have encouraged the entry of Tiger and the Emirates subsidiary as a means of avoiding domestic criticism when Q departs the scene.
The question remains what is the game plan for Jetstar? Who is slotted to take her over?
Tiger have been offered some closer Asian routes by Q.
Q is going and good ridance if that is their attitude but Howard and Costello need to be aked some tough questions.
Bruce Haigh

I have to agree with virtually everything Lindsay Tanner said.
But and its a big BUT;

If anyone is dopey enough to put that sort of money into an airline with
peak oil possibly within one to five years of now then let them.
Even if peak oil is further away than five years it would still be a
very risky investment. QANTAS has ordered 20 or 25 of the airbus 380s.
What makes them feel they will have the fuel and traffic to run and pay
them ?

There are two canaries in the mine, toll roads and airlines.
Tourism will go out with the airlines.
The toll road and airlines are betting their worth on the word of an arab
who is telling us "Now don't you worry everything will be allright"
Shades of Jo Bejelkie Petersen !