Japan Airlines - Orient Aviation

COMMENTAre the barriers ready to fall?The move by a consortium of internationalinvestors to buy out Qantas Airways for US$8.7billion provoked the expected response frommany Australians. The national icon airlinewould be lost to foreign control. Jobs would gooffshore. The Qantas Group would be broken up. None of thisis happening.The airline will remain under majority Australianownership and the leadership of current management. Some46% of shareholders are already offshore. That will drop toaround 40% if the deal is completed.Yet the wave of indignation that erupted over the buyoutis typical of the barriers that impede rationalizationand consolidation of the global airline industry. Nationalownership rules and government attitudes, as well as publicperceptions, toward national flag carriers are a restraint on theability of the industry to properly develop as a global businessin an international market place.Given that Airline Partners Australia, the consortium thatincludes Macquarie Bank and high-flying U.S. investor DavidBonderman’s Texas Pacific Group, is successful in winningcontrol of Qantas, it may well become a blueprint for similardeals in the Asia-Pacific.It brings the airline fresh equity for expansion anddevelopment, allows offshore interests to become involved,yet keeps the carrier in majority local hands.Hopefully, this type of deal will eventually ease concernsamong the various governments in the region aboutallowing their airlines to fully participate in the commercialmarketplace without losing their identity or diluting theirstatus as national symbols.Anyone who believes Qantas is going to become lessAustralian or lose its Flying Kangaroo image because of achange of ownership is living in dreamland. The brand hasbecome too important for any owner to endanger it.In conjunction with the interest of major global equityinvestment firms in the Asia-Pacific, there are also signsconsolidation is gathering pace. We have already seen JapanAirlines and Japan Air System merge. And Dragonair withCathay Pacific Airways. Soon, Air India and Indian Airlineswill be a single unit.Let us hope these linkages, along with a move towardsmore investment in the region’s airlines from internationalinvestors, will continue to erode the barriers holding theindustry back from adopting global operating standards.TOM BALLANTYNEChief CorrespondentThe Association of Asia Pacific Airlines’ members and contact listAir New ZealandChief Executive, Mr Rob FyfeVP Public Affairs and Group Communications,Mr Mike TodTel: (64 9) 336 2770 Fax: (64 9) 336 2759All Nippon AirwaysPresident and CEO, Mr Mineo YamamotoDep. Director, Public Relations, Mr Kaz IwakataTel: (81 3) 6735 1111Fax: (81 3) 6735 1115Asiana AirlinesPresident & Chief Executive,Mr Park Chan-bupManaging Director, PR, Mr Hong Lae KimTel: (822) 758 8161 Fax: (822) 758 8008Cathay Pacific AirwaysChief Executive Officer, Mr Philip ChenCorporate Communications General Manager,Mr Dane ChengTel: (852) 2747 8868 Fax: (852) 2810 6563China AirlinesPresident, Mr Ringo ChaoVP, Corp Comms, Mr Johnson SunTel: (8862) 2514 5750Fax: (8862) 2514 5754DragonairChief Executive Officer, Mr Kenny TangGeneral Manager, Corp. CommunicationsMrs Laura CramptonTel: (852) 3193 3193 Fax: (852) 3193 3194EVA AirChairman, Mr Steve LinExecutive VP, Group Public Relations,Mr K. W. NiehTel: (8862) 2500 1122 Fax: (8862) 2500 1523Garuda IndonesiaPresident & CEO, Mr Emirsyah SatarVP Corporate Communications, Mr PujobrotoTel: (6221) 231 2612Fax: (6221) 381 1486Japan AirlinesPresident, Mr Haruka NishimatsuDirector, International Public Relations,Mr Geoffrey TudorTel: (813) 5460 3109 Fax: (813) 5460 5910Korean AirChairman and CEO, Mr Yang Ho ChoManaging VP, Corporate Communications,Mr Nam Il ParkTel: (822) 2656 7065 Fax: (822) 2656 7288/89Malaysia AirlinesManaging Director, Idris JalaGen Mgr, Int’l Affairs, Germal Singh KheraTel: (603) 2165 5137Fax: (603) 2161 0558Philippine AirlinesPresident, Mr Jaime BautistaVP Corporate Communications,Mr Rolando EstabilioTel: (632) 817 1234 Fax: (632) 817 8689Qantas AirwaysManaging Director and CEO, Mr Geoff DixonHead of Corporate Communications,Belinda de RomeTel: (612) 9691 4773 Fax: (612) 9691 4187Royal Brunei AirlinesChairman, Pengiran Dato Hamid YassinActing CEO, Pengiran Yusof JeludinTel: (673 2) 229 799Fax: (673 2) 221 230Singapore AirlinesChief Executive Officer,Mr Chew Choon SengVP Public Affairs, Mr Stephen ForshawTel: (65) 6541 5880 Fax: (65) 6545 6083Thai Airways InternationalPresident, Flying Officer Apinan SumanaseniDirector, PR,Mrs Sunathee IsvarphornchaiTel: (662) 513 3364 Fax: (662) 545 3891Vietnam AirlinesPresident and CEO, Mr Nguyen Xuan HienDep Director, Corp Affairs,Mr Nguyen Huy HieuTel: (84-4) 873 0928 Fax: (84-4) 872 1161February 2007 ORIENT AVIATION 3