I managed to miss both the news itself and this unfolding thread until I got home last night. I suspect most of what needs to be said has already been said, yet I feel I can’t let such a momentous development pass without some kind of comment.

First, there are a couple of little snippets in the news release that I think speak volumes.

What surprised me about this was the ‘any prospect’ bit coupled with the timing. Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t BA Connect just 8 months old? Was there a prospect of profitability when it was launched and something has changed? Or was it a basket case from the word go and the re-branding was just a matter of doing something to try to stem the losses while a suitable deal was sought?

Then there’s : Sad to say, but this seems to underline the view that the operation was a flawed concept from outset, with no chance of competing against true LCCs. (Whether Flybe is a true LCC is another question.)

Next, the cynic in me wonders whether what we’re seeing here is – a least in part – a breathtaking example of WW demonstrating beyond all doubt that he is a hard manager who, on finding a limb of the organisation that is under-performing, will not hesitate to hack it off. Despite its undoubted successes, BA faces some massive issues, including the pensions deficit (which probably has the capacity to bring down the company altogether) and a depressing ability to demonstrate a lingering taste for 70s-style industrial relations. Is it way too cynical to think that WW is, in part, establishing his credentials for bigger decisions to come?

The next one to watch will be LGW. According to several posts on this board, he’s already said that, in the absence of demonstrable profitability, he won’t go the board with a fleet renewal proposal. But we all know that the 737s are starting to present a poor image, so just carrying on and doing nothing doesn’t sound like much of an option. I sense that an even bigger crunch point is coming.

Finally, much of the comment on this thread has been about the business logic of this move and that’s absolutely fair. As a shareholder, I of course realise that BA is a business and businesses have to make difficult decisions. Yet I also respond to this news on an emotional (if that’s the right word) level and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that – indeed I’d like to think that everyone involved in the decision took it with a heavy heart.

As a fully paid-up saddo whose pulse quickens at the very sight of the livery, this is dreadful news. It’s a staggering reduction in the BA presence across the UK as a whole. Complete obliteration from BHX and BRS, MAN only used for London feeds (plus the JFK – for now!) And if the rumours about the Loganair franchise prove to be correct, EDI and GLA will soon also be down to mere shadows of their former selves, in terms of BA operations. Shocking indeed, even if it’s the right thing to do from a business perspective.