Well, Carlson has managed programs for NW and KLM, as well as Radisson's frequent stay program, so the idea that a FF program must be a division of the airline that offers it is becoming as anachronistic as airlines keeping their res systems in house. [As AA discovered when it took SABRE public, while holding onto the controlling stake.]

As Air Canada was well aware, given the bleak stockmarket and market cap that airlines have, their true values are being ignored. AC has a market cap of about US$300 million. Yet its Aeroplan division alone was generating positive cash and thus on standard evaluations of 7 to 10 times cashflow, was worth US$650 to US$700 million.

ONEX clearly recognized this and siezed the day by offering AC cash it needed, while maintaining control in the airline's hands. Talk had been that AC, which spun Aeroplan off from being a division within the marketing department, to a full standalone subsidiary company, would do an IPO. But of course, this is no time for an airline to go to the capital markets.

ONEX also sees in FF programs -- and other airline's current plights -- the same opportunities it saw when it bought SKY CHEFS from AA. In partnership with LH, ONEX grew SKYCHEFS into the premier airline catering company, increased profits and cash flow, but also made the local managers quite wealthy.

I would not be surprised to see UA selling a similar stake in Mileage Plus to ONEX or someone else [Carlson might be considered a conflict of interest holding both NW/KL and UA]. These raise interesting possibilities for the future.

Americans might not know, but when the movie theatre business tanked two years ago, ONEX scooped up several major chains, including CINEPLEX, and has now reorganized these holdings into a fairly strong, fiscally healthy business.

Time will tell.

BTW, there are lots of threads on this over on the AC Forum, so those who want to read some more newspaper reports and analysis.