Emva kokuba iimarike zivaliwe ngoLwesine ebusuku, ibhodi yeBritish Airways yematsha yaya kwintlanganiso kundlunkulu wayo, kufutshane neHeathrow, into eya kuba lixesha elichazayo kwinqwelomoya.
Ngaphambili kolu suku, ibhodi ye-Iberia yayidibene eMadrid ukuba ivumelane nemimiselo yesivumelwano kunye ne-British carrier, emva kweenyanga ze-16 emva kokuba amacala amabini ebhengeze ukuba ayethetha ngokudibanisa. Umlawuli oyintloko we-BA uWillie Walsh wayekhe wacebisa ngaphambili ukuba ulawulo lwequmrhu - ukwakhiwa kwebhodi - ibe yinto ebambelelayo kwiingxoxo. Kodwa iintetho zakhawuleza emva kotshintsho kulawulo e-Iberia ehlotyeni. U-Antonio Vázquez, owathatha indawo yokuthwala i-Spanish, wathengisa inkampani yecuba i-Altadis kwi-Imperial Tobacco yaseBritani ngo-2008 kwaye unegama lokuba ngumthengisi.
Kukwabonakala ngathi ilahleko enkulu eyenziwe zizo zombini iinqwelomoya zilolele ujoliso lwezi nkampani zimbini ekwenzeni isivumelwano. Emva kwexesha elingaphezu kweyure, kwavela ibhodi yeBA kwaye isivumelwano sasikhona. Isibhengezo sakhutshwa ngentsimbi yesi-8.30:XNUMX ngobo busuku.
La macala mabini anethemba lokuba isivumelwano siya kubuyisela iqela elidityanisiweyo kwinzuzo, libavumela ukuba bacuthe iindleko kwaye baphucule amandla okuthenga kwizinto ezithandwa ngamafutha kunye nenqwelomoya, okonga imali eyi-€400m (£357m) ngonyaka. Kwakhona kuya kudala amandla engeniso ephezulu ngokunikezela ngoluhlu olubanzi kakhulu lweendlela kubakhweli, ukudibanisa amandla e-BA ukuwela iAtlantiki kunye nenethiwekhi ye-Iberia kuMzantsi Melika. "Ukudityaniswa kwenzeka kwishishini lethu kwaye kubalulekile ukuba i-BA iqale ukuthatha inxaxheba kuloo nto," utshilo uWalsh ngoLwesihlanu.
Oko kukuthi, ukuba i-BA inokulungisa intsilelo yayo yomhlalaphantsi - kucingelwa ukuba malunga ne-£ 2.6bn. Izikim zayo zixhomekeke kuqingqo-maxabiso ekupheleni kwalo nyaka, emva koko abalawuli bomhlalaphantsi kunye nabaphathi beBA kuya kufuneka bathethathethane ukuba yimalini na imali ekufuneka ifakwe yinkampani yenqwelomoya ukuyigcina iqhuba. Nangona kunjalo, isivumelwano siya kufuna i-rubber-stamping ngumlawuli wepenshini, okulindeleke ukuba yenze isigqibo kude kube nguSeptemba ozayo, kwaye ukudibanisa akuyi kugqitywa de kube kusonjululwe umcimbi. Kudala kuthandana, kwaye kuya kuba luthethathethwano olude.
“Yayisisivumelwano ebesilindele ukwenziwa nekufuneka senziwa,” utshilo omnye umthombo osondeleyo kwesi sivumelwano. “Ekugqibeleni iYurophu iya kwahlulwa ibe ziinqwelomoya ezintathu okanye ezine ezinenkonzo epheleleyo kunye nenqwelomoya enye okanye ezimbini ezinexabiso eliphantsi. Kwiinyanga ezisithoba ezidlulileyo, i-BA yayithetha ngokudibana neQantas, isivumelwano kunye ne-Iberia kunye nemanyano ye-transatlantic kunye ne-American. UQantas uwile ... kwaye uWillie ebefuna ukukhupha omnye komnye. "
Ngokuvuma kukaWalsh ngokwakhe, iBA ibiku “dabi lokusinda” ixesha elininzi kulo nyaka. Kule minyaka ilishumi idlulileyo, ishishini leenqwelomoya liye lasuka kwenye ingxaki liye kwenye: uhlaselo lwabanqolobi luka-2001, isoyikiso seebhombu ezingamanzi, iSars, umkhuhlane wehagu kunye nokunyuka kwexabiso leoli. I-BA ngokwayo iphinde yafumana ingxaki yokuvulwa kwesiseko sayo esitsha e-Heathrow, kwiSitena seSihlanu, esivumayo ngoku sijikwe saba yimpumelelo.
Kodwa ibe kukudodobala koqoqosho lwehlabathi okwenze owona monakalo mkhulu: I-BA ilahlekelwa yi-£ 1.6ma ngosuku. Ekuqaleni kwale nyanga, yabika ilahleko yesiqingatha sonyaka we-£ 292m phezu kwelahleko yerekhodi ye-£ 401m kunyaka odlulileyo. Oku iya kuba kokokuqala kwimbali yomphathi ukuba irekhode iminyaka emibini ilandelelana kwindawo ebomvu.
Isivumelwano ne-Iberia samkelwa ngokubanzi siSixeko. Inkampani entsha iya kuvelisa ingeniso yonyaka ye-£ 13.5bn - eyenza ibe yinqwelomoya yesithathu enkulu kunazo zonke emhlabeni - ithwala abagibeli be-61.5m kwaye ibhabhe kwii-airport ze-205. Iya kuba nekomkhulu eLondon, nangona ihlala eMadrid ngeenjongo zerhafu, kunye nomphathi oyintloko waseWalsh kunye noVázquez njengosihlalo. Zombini iimpawu ziya kuqhubeka zikhona.
UJohn Strickland, umcebisi wenqwelomoya, uthi iBA ibiziva “ishiywe ngasemva ngakumbi nangakumbi” njengoko abo babekhuphisana nabo i-Air France ne-KLM zadityaniswa kwaye iLufthansa yathatha iSwiss International Airlines ngo-2005 kwaye emva koko iBrussels Airlines, iAustrian Airlines kunye neBMI ethwala yaseBritane.
"I-Air France-KLM ngumzekelo oqaqambileyo wokudityaniswa kwenqwelomoya," utshilo. “Yayisisivumelwano ebesingathwali gazi kubasebenzi. Nokuba yayiyipragmatism okanye ukubona kwangaphambili, bagcina iibrendi ezimbini kunye neeofisi eziyintloko ezimbini ezisebenzayo. Bajonge ukongiwa kweendleko kodwa kwakungekho nkohlakalo ebantwini kwaye abathengi bagcinwe bonwabile. Kodwa kuye kwakho ukunyuka okukhulu kwingeniso. Ibe yimeko yesinye dibanisa enye ilingana nesithathu… Yimodeli esebenzileyo kwaye yinto eza kufunda kuyo iBA kunye ne-Iberia.
U-Walsh, oneminyaka engama-48, owajoyina i-BA ngo-2005, wenza uphawu lwakhe e-Aer Lingus, apho wajoyina khona njengomqhubi wenqwelomoya kwaye wasebenza indlela yakhe yokunyukela kumlawuli oyintloko. Wajika ishishini ukuba libe ngumqhubi oneendleko eziphantsi onobundlobongela kwaye ngelixa wayelapho wachitha iminyaka emibini eMallorca, apho wayeqhuba i-Futura, inkampani yeenqwelo moya yeqela laseIreland. ISpanish sakhe, ngokucacileyo, asibi kangako.
Kubonakala ngathi akunakwenzeka ukuba uWalsh abe nekhefu elininzi lokuphefumla emva kokutywina isivumelwano. Iqela le-BA cabin crew lisoyikise ngogwayimbo ngenxa yokulahleka kwemisebenzi kunye notshintsho kwimimiselo yabo; i-airline sele inqumle izithuba ze-4,900. Iimanyano zikwangumqobo onokuthi ube ngumqobo kwisivumelwano se-Iberia, sifuna iziqinisekiso zokuba akusayi kuphinda kubekho ukukhutshwa okunyanzelekileyo kwimbuyekezo yenkxaso-mboleko. Kwaye iBA isalindele isigwebo esivela eWashington naseBrussels kumanyano lwayo neAmerican Airlines.
UStrickland uthi: “Iingxaki zika-BA zinzulu kodwa azikho mbi ngakumbi kunezabanye abantu. “Kwaye abafe umzimba, okanye banyakaze oobhontsi babo; basebenza kuluhlu olubanzi lweenkalo zokuphucula imeko… Kwaye ubukhulu becala, abasebenzi baye baluma imbumbulu kwaye babona imfuneko yotshintsho. UWillie Walsh ubhekwa kakuhle kakhulu ngabatyalo-mali kwaye ukujongana ne-Iberia yiplanga ephambili ekuqhubeleni phambili. Yintsiba kwikepusi yakhe.”
INTO ONOKUYITHATHA KWELI NQAKU:
- Earlier in the day, the board of Iberia had met in Madrid to agree the terms of a deal with the British carrier, 16 months after the two sides had announced that they were in merger talks.
- The two sides hope the deal will return the combined group to profitability, allowing them to slash costs and improve buying power on the likes of fuel and aircraft, generating savings of €400m (£357m) a year.
- Even then, the agreement will need rubber-stamping by the pensions regulator, which is not expected to make a ruling until next September, and the merger will not be completed until the issue is resolved.
