VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

[markis10]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

Remember that Skywest/Virgin were/are introducing the ATRs as quickly as they possibly can as they are making a killing with them.

I believe they are about to announce some new services, memo to staff last week indicated some ATR news, and it will be interesting to see where the 600s are put.

 

[Jousams]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

The upcoming wifi IFE for Virgin Australia by lufthansa Teknik would also be well suited to Tiger, possibly giving it the edge over jetstar, without the extra CASK of PTV's. Maybe they could have an iPad/galaxy tab pre order online much like baggage

I would also expect tiger to take the Ballina, Proserpine & Hearvy Bay services, aswell as maybe some Bali & Fiji Services.

 

[Blinky]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

Self interest talking. If Tiger lifts their game under the Virgin banner, my company (which doesn't use Tiger) may well change it's policy. Bye bye FF points.

 

[markis10]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

Self interest talking. If Tiger lifts their game under the Virgin banner, my company (which doesn't use Tiger) may well change it's policy. Bye bye FF points.

Given their on time record and lack of cancellations lately, one could argue they have already lifted!

 

[Blinky]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

Given their on time record and lack of cancellations lately, one could argue they have already lifted!

Oh Jeez, don't tell our Travel Clerk that.

But seriously, the Skywest purchase is a big win too. Isn't this one of the big FIFO carriers?

 

[777]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

You do need to include the Skywest part of the deal in there as well!

Not really. It's unrelated to the question of the value that VA extracted (or lost) in acquiring Tiger. Although the capital probably helped with the transaction.

 

[ReLoad]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

Logistics aside, I doth my cap to John Borghetti. He has executed, in a stupidly short time frame, a strategy that has taken VA from awkwardly-positioned battler, to a fully-fledged worldwide network.

It's an absolutely stunning business play.

Likewise I think JB is doing a great job, although I think that saying they have a fully fledged worldwide network is a little off the mark.
Partners are great and all, but for the average consumer its very difficult to understand and use, things like *a and OW are relatively easy to understand and have similar benefits accross carriers, until they are in a "fully fledged" alliance im reluctant to say they are global, just my POV.

 

[ajw373]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

I am sure that JB knows this - that by hurting JQd he is, by definition, also hurting the whole QF group because QF management have painted themselves into a corner in the PR front with the story that JQ makes tonnes of money and QF loses money.

Actually the story, if you want to call it that is JQ makes money (not tonnes of it), QFd makes a moderate amount of money and QFi looses money. But don't let facts get into the way of a good conspiracy theory though, and if you find some evidence or hard facts to support your theory please turn it into ASIC, I would imagine they would be interested.

 

[Dee Thom]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

Remember that Skywest/Virgin were/are introducing the ATRs as quickly as they possibly can as they are making a killing with them.

Another interesting aspect of both major airlines is the metal they fly. The supposed full service boys fly B738's, where as the LCC's tend to go with the A320's, what do you make of this Bill ?

Is the A320 a better seat cost per klm, or is the B738 ?

All very interesting !

Cheers,
Dee.

 

[markis10]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

Having 35 Tiger aircraft flying around the country will be a thorn in the side of JQ in a few years time!

 

[jetlagger]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

Having 35 Tiger aircraft flying around the country will be a thorn in the side of JQ in a few years time!

& also more of a leech - I presume!

 

[Timba-Jet]

Very interesting and somewhat surprising move by VA in acquiring majority share of Tiger.

The LCC/leisure market is here to stay, and as VA move further away from this segment.... Tiger fills a void. Whether its the right brand and/or VA can turn the brand around, time will tell. JB and his team have done a great job in re-positioning VA to date.

 

[moa999]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

John Borgetti on ABC The Business "we have virtually no position in the budget market"
Wow - how things change

 

[whatmeworry]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

I am surprised VA's stock price actually went up on this purchase!

 

[jetlagger]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

I am surprised VA's stock price actually went up on this purchase!

Surely will level out.. as the balance sheet is realistically exposed

 

[ajw373]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

Another interesting aspect of both major airlines is the metal they fly. The supposed full service boys fly B738's, where as the LCC's tend to go with the A320's, what do you make of this Bill ?

Is the A320 a better seat cost per klm, or is the B738 ?

All very interesting !

Cheers,
Dee.

You will find for the most part it is an historical thing rather than saying full service airlines order 737 and LCC A320's. In fact around the time that the then Virgin Blue started you could have possibly argued that 737=LCC as that is what many LCC were ordering.

With Qantas and their narrow body fleet decisions, circa 2000/2001 Qantas were in the hunt for a 737 classic replacement and it was widely rumoured that in 2001 and the collapse of Ansett it was rumoured that Qantas had selected and indeed placed orders for the A320 family to replace their 737 classics. Though with the collapse of Ansett they had to bring new a/c into the fleet quickly and found because of 9/11 that happened around the same time that they had fast access to some cheap 737's that were ordered by AA, hence the -800's was selected for the Qantas fleet. The A320's that Qantas were eyeing/rumoured to have ordered are now flying with Jetstar. So as I said more a matter of timing than anything, so best not to read too much into it.

 

[markis10]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

LCCs like A320s because you can turn them around much quicker, however they do require more sophisticated machinery to do this, making high frequency city pairings economical while one flight a day ports tend to be the realm of the 737 NG, and non LCC carriers.

 

[ajw373]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

LCCs like A320s because you can turn them around much quicker, however they do require more sophisticated machinery to do this, making high frequency city pairings economical while one flight a day ports tend to be the realm of the 737 NG, and non LCC carriers.

Can you give some examples to back this claim up? Not the turnaround bit, because yes an A320 family a/c with the optional containerised baggage system will turn around slightly faster than a manually loaded A320 or 737's but rather the assertion that 737 do one flight a day ports and A320's high frequency pairings. I am thinking to Easyjet, Jetstar, Qantas, BA, DJ at present and don't see any of these airlines matching this assertion.

 

[markis10]

re: VA invests in Tiger, buys Skywest, SQ investment & ACCC Concerns

Can you give some examples to back this claim up? Not the turnaround bit, because yes an A320 family a/c with the optional containerised baggage system will turn around slightly faster than a manually loaded A320 or 737's but rather the assertion that 737 do one flight a day ports and A320's high frequency pairings. I am thinking to Easyjet, Jetstar, Qantas, BA, DJ at present and don't see any of these airlines matching this assertion.

Easy, LCCs don't operate one flight a day ports, and where they have it has not lasted long. The 737 allows legacy carriers to operate a variety of ports that get a single flight a day as well as busy ports with multiple same city flights without the expensive container handling equipment needed for an A320, obviously I am not saying high frequency pairings are the domain of the A320 either, it's just that the 737 gives a premium carrier the option to run services into less demand ports at a lower cost while still having the capability to be competitive on the trunks.

An A320 uses 2T less fuel for the same max range as a 737 and has lower capital costs, keeping it in the air means more $$$ for the LCC. With the upcoming next generation of single aisle airliners, the Max has a lower hourly operating cost than the Neo ( projected of course), which is why the tables have turned back to the 737 as being the favoured child in the last few months once the picture matures and Neo loses its first to market advantage,

 

[samh004]

Easy, LCCs don't operate one flight a day ports, and where they have it has not lasted long.

JQ operates an A320 to PPP once a day and I was surprised how quickly we were back in the air. Though maybe they have expensive machinery there?