Airline's rescue planned - CEO

By GREGG WYCHERLEY

A major investor in Qantas New Zealand says a rescue package would have kept the airline afloat and saved many of its 1100 jobs.

Tappenden Holdings chief executive Rob Campbell said a plan had been developed that would have seen the airline continue trading and making a profit in about 12 months.

Tappenden Holdings is the investment company of Alan Gibbs and Trevor Farmer, who between them own 28 per cent of the airline.

Mr Campbell said intense efforts - until the time of receivership at 3.25 am last Saturday - were made by directors to reach agreement with suppliers over the new business plan. "Under that plan, all suppliers would have received payment for monies owed and the majority of staff would have kept their jobs.

"Some of the provincial routes would have been reorganised along the lines of the proposal now apparently being discussed by Qantas Airways with Origin Pacific."

Mr Campbell said Qantas New Zealand had been in talks with Origin Pacific, Air New Zealand and Qantas Airways in the weeks leading up to the receivership.

"Our view was, and still is, that the receivership was not a foregone conclusion as we already had the support of several of the major suppliers to the new plan."

He said investors were willing to inject several million dollars into the new plan but two suppliers refused to allow any more time, leaving no alternative but to put the company into receivership.

But Engineers union spokesman Andrew Little said he had no sympathy for the investors, who had done too little, too late.

"Some questions must be asked about what the directors knew, and what they were doing allowing the company to get into that state. It's the heavyweight investors who should be fronting up - people hold them responsible."

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