FOOTNOTES
HILARY JOFFE: As SAA adopts the brace position, finding a brave rescuer will prove extremely difficult
‘The government is hoping the liquidators can avoid breaking up the company’
The Italian government is expected to invite binding takeover bids in the next few days for bankrupt airline Alitalia. The national carrier filed for insolvency in May after its employees refused to support a restructuring programme that would have involved wage cuts and lay-offs. Alitalia has been troubled for decades, consuming billions of euros in bail-out money. The government is hoping the liquidators can avoid breaking up the company and can find a buyer for the whole airline rather than, for example, just the lucrative routes and assets. Competition from low-cost carriers and the airline’s high cost structure helped to sink it. But it’s hardly uncommon for airlines to go bankrupt. In the US, where almost all the big airlines have been in business rescue at one time or another, it’s often considered the best way to force the restructuring needed to cut costs and headcounts and restore profitability.
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