Transat had greater confidence in AC to complete acquisition, than other alternatives
According to
this article on La Presse's website, and in the information circular sent to Transat shareholders today, Transat had greater confidence that AC could actually complete the acquisition of Transat due primarily to better liquidity and their ability to conduct proper financial due diligence in a set timeframe. These are the primary reasons why Transat ignored the superior offer from MACH who had never provided Transat with proof that they could actually afford to buy them. Another interesting nugget in the article is that AC had been negotiating since at least January a potential acquisition, so this was well before the 7M8 issues and WS acquisition by Onex.
Article is in French