Hard words for Air NZ over Ansett

By CHRIS DANIELS

Air New Zealand's behaviour during the 2001 collapse of Ansett was "unacceptable" says the retiring head of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.

David Knott, speaking in an interview on Australian television, said the demise of Ansett, a fully owned subsidiary of Air NZ, was the "biggest disappointment" of his 10-year stint in the job.

"Our own view was that Air New Zealand's conduct was unacceptable and I do not believe to this day that it was acceptable," Knott said.

"But in the end the law was against us and we simply had nowhere to go - I think that's my biggest disappointment case in 2001.

"It's the things you don't do or you can't do for one reason or another that might frustrate you a bit."

Court action over payouts due to Ansett workers is continuing in Australia, with around $360m still disputed. The trustees of the Ansett Ground Staff Superannuation fund are appealing against a decision which found A$200 million ($227 million) of the airline's assets should be distributed to Ansett's 15,000 former staff rather than given to the super fund for its 8700 members.