Confirmed: Sir Michael Bishop sells bmi to Lufthansa !!!
Oct 30, 2008, 1:58 pm
#301
Join Date: Mar 2002
Programs: QF Platinum (OW Emerald); QF Lifestime Silver; BD Diamond Club Gold (*A Gold)
Posts: 4,786
Perhaps we could invite the official LH lurker, LHrelate aka Michelle Schiff, to spend some time with us and answer these many questions? (Doubtless a tad premature...)
Hopefully I won't be banned from the LH board following my most recent post...
Hopefully I won't be banned from the LH board following my most recent post...
Oct 30, 2008, 2:05 pm
#302
Moderator: Lufthansa Miles & More, India based airlines, India, External Miles & Points Resources
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: MUC
Programs: LH SEN
Posts: 48,385
Michelle has better things to do than read FT right now... plus most of the buzz is speculation. LH took equity in SN and B6 recently and no official word so far on any migration/integration/co-operation with M&M.
Oct 30, 2008, 2:10 pm
#303
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Northern Ireland (in spirit), but much more likely GB or Europe.
Programs: EI Aer Club, IB Plus, BA EC, AAdvantage
Posts: 769
It was the new Star Alliance T1 lounge complex which houses the alliance wide First and Business Class lounges which I had in mind when making this statement. At present there is no lounge in T1 which M&M *S have access to, and I am not sure the BD Gate 14 lounge would have the capacity to cope with a deluge of customers (unlike the BD domestic lounges).
I don't know the size of the new *A lounges in T1, are they sufficently large to cope when the bulldozers finally move on T2 and LH+clan proper move in along with the US, UA, SA etc Long Hauls?
I think we'll wait with baited breath to find out what the new BD branded (assuming it will still be BD branded) lounge will be like. Though something tells me I may go blue [or should that be grey and yellow
]in the face in the intervening period!
Oct 30, 2008, 2:12 pm
#304
Join Date: Mar 2002
Programs: QF Platinum (OW Emerald); QF Lifestime Silver; BD Diamond Club Gold (*A Gold)
Posts: 4,786
Oct 30, 2008, 2:16 pm
#305
Join Date: May 2006
Location: 5 miles from EMA
Programs: BD, BAEC Pleb, VS Pleb, Accor Pleb, HHonors Gold, Big White Season Pass
Posts: 5,927
Oct 30, 2008, 2:19 pm
#306
Join Date: Mar 2002
Programs: QF Platinum (OW Emerald); QF Lifestime Silver; BD Diamond Club Gold (*A Gold)
Posts: 4,786
Oliver2002 seems well placed as both a BD*G and a mod on the LH board. Though hate to put him on the spot like this...
Oct 30, 2008, 2:24 pm
#307
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: SIN 5 days out of 7
Programs: BD*G, A3*G, BA-S, Accor Gold, IHG Amb
Posts: 5,505
From the bmi internal memo to staff (my bolding):
29th October 2008
Discussions have already taken place with Lufthansa as to the future shape and direction of the bmi group. It is also worth remembering that Lufthansa have had representatives on our Board for the last nine years and therefore have a good view of all aspects of our business already. However, those discussions will now intensify and it would be wrong for me to prejudge the conclusions at this stage. Personally I am pleased that we are becoming a member of the Lufthansa family in this challenging time for our industry.
Discussions have already taken place with Lufthansa as to the future shape and direction of the bmi group. It is also worth remembering that Lufthansa have had representatives on our Board for the last nine years and therefore have a good view of all aspects of our business already. However, those discussions will now intensify and it would be wrong for me to prejudge the conclusions at this stage. Personally I am pleased that we are becoming a member of the Lufthansa family in this challenging time for our industry.
From Sir Michael Bishop's speech at the aviation club (my bolding)
24th April 2008
As a result - to use theatrical terminology - in the airline industry there are always likely to be more players than parts available.
Not only will there always be those willing and able to come into the airline business, but there seems no lack of appetite by the manufacturers to build ever more capacity.
The past few years have, on the whole, been good to the airline business but a change may be in the wind.
Every turn in the business cycle of the industry brings a new twist which makes it different from the last.
...
This is also a period of time when unusually for bmi its ownership is under scrutiny.
The shareholder options between myself and Lufthansa have been widely reported some with more accuracy than others. None of the accounts accurately reflect all of the essential details of that private agreement between shareholders and I shall not elaborate further on them today.
If or when a decision is made to change the current situation, shareholders will communicate it to employees and publicly in the normal way, not withstanding media speculation.
However, I can confidently say that shareholders will not permit an event to arise through which bmi would become the subject of any opportunistic or under-valued approach. Whether bmi remains independent and grows through acquisition or whether the shareholders decide another course, we will not be bounced into any particular direction by comments from other carriers or the media. The future of the business will be determined with the best interests of bmi, its shareholders and staff being paramount.
To conclude – I feel confident about the future of the bmi group which thanks to the relentless effort of our management team has re-positioned the airline to create a growing business which can deliver sustainable profitability in the future. There will be the same challenges, as for all airlines, which I am confident can be surmounted as in the past.
Not only will there always be those willing and able to come into the airline business, but there seems no lack of appetite by the manufacturers to build ever more capacity.
The past few years have, on the whole, been good to the airline business but a change may be in the wind.
Every turn in the business cycle of the industry brings a new twist which makes it different from the last.
...
This is also a period of time when unusually for bmi its ownership is under scrutiny.
The shareholder options between myself and Lufthansa have been widely reported some with more accuracy than others. None of the accounts accurately reflect all of the essential details of that private agreement between shareholders and I shall not elaborate further on them today.
If or when a decision is made to change the current situation, shareholders will communicate it to employees and publicly in the normal way, not withstanding media speculation.
However, I can confidently say that shareholders will not permit an event to arise through which bmi would become the subject of any opportunistic or under-valued approach. Whether bmi remains independent and grows through acquisition or whether the shareholders decide another course, we will not be bounced into any particular direction by comments from other carriers or the media. The future of the business will be determined with the best interests of bmi, its shareholders and staff being paramount.
To conclude – I feel confident about the future of the bmi group which thanks to the relentless effort of our management team has re-positioned the airline to create a growing business which can deliver sustainable profitability in the future. There will be the same challenges, as for all airlines, which I am confident can be surmounted as in the past.
July 2008
Also, having spoken with Nigel Turner at a Diamond Club member’s event back in July 2008, the point about bmi identity still being around, at least in a year’s time, was also reiterated when I quizzed him.
Last edited by jbfield; Oct 30, 2008 at 2:35 pm
Oct 30, 2008, 2:30 pm
#308
Join Date: Aug 2005
Posts: 137
I think that SMB chose the right time to enforce the put option. Now that the profits at in the airline industry as a whole plummet and LH bought stakes in Brussels Airlines, considers taking over Austrian and perhaps buying a stake in Alitalia and/or SAS...
I agree that the LH press release has an undertone that LH is not happy with having to buy bmi right now, despite them saying earlier that they put aside the cash few years ago. Together with their 75% loss in profit forcast their numbers might not attract the investor world in the near future; but overall they have still a very robust concept.
The thing that LH is after are the slots on one of the busiest airports of the world. Hmmm, just thinking, wouldn't be surprised to see BD becoming LH UK with many new bases like Bristol etc doing only short-haul and intra-UK...
With regard to my experience with bmi, I very highly appreciated the professional help from Joanna whenever something needed sorting out. I wish her and all the other folks all the best for the future.
LH is a great airline: good and friendly service (just compare that with UA or any other 'non CO' US carrier...)
I liked DC cause I could do C&M and, as some other folks already said, fly and enjoy C and F class for which I would have never got the cash from work. I also liked getting the full 100% miles for flights across the pond. Just compare that to LH M&M which gives in most lower fare classes only 50%
Overall, both programs comrare:
100000 LH SEN (80000 +25% FTL bonus) for TWO years status is very close to 2x 38000 BD G per year (that's 76000 miles)... The redemption value is what I would be very sad to see vanish.
Remember having been called by an agency on behalf of LH M&M a few months back. They wanted to know how I compare LH M&M with other memberships. I told them straight away that DC with M&C is the best value... hope they listen.
I agree that the LH press release has an undertone that LH is not happy with having to buy bmi right now, despite them saying earlier that they put aside the cash few years ago. Together with their 75% loss in profit forcast their numbers might not attract the investor world in the near future; but overall they have still a very robust concept.
The thing that LH is after are the slots on one of the busiest airports of the world. Hmmm, just thinking, wouldn't be surprised to see BD becoming LH UK with many new bases like Bristol etc doing only short-haul and intra-UK...
With regard to my experience with bmi, I very highly appreciated the professional help from Joanna whenever something needed sorting out. I wish her and all the other folks all the best for the future.
LH is a great airline: good and friendly service (just compare that with UA or any other 'non CO' US carrier...)
I liked DC cause I could do C&M and, as some other folks already said, fly and enjoy C and F class for which I would have never got the cash from work. I also liked getting the full 100% miles for flights across the pond. Just compare that to LH M&M which gives in most lower fare classes only 50%
Overall, both programs comrare:
100000 LH SEN (80000 +25% FTL bonus) for TWO years status is very close to 2x 38000 BD G per year (that's 76000 miles)... The redemption value is what I would be very sad to see vanish.
Remember having been called by an agency on behalf of LH M&M a few months back. They wanted to know how I compare LH M&M with other memberships. I told them straight away that DC with M&C is the best value... hope they listen.
Oct 30, 2008, 4:11 pm
#309
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: London (UK), Wellington (NZ)
Programs: AirNZ AP *GE, Aegean *G, BMI Gold, BA Exec club Gold, UA MP, QFF
Posts: 303
Damn, I'm late to this as I was en route from Wellington - London via Sydney and Seoul on Asiana and Air NZ. I'd have burned some miles and flown business instead of buying an economy ticket had this happened a few weeks ago.
Ah well....
So, how long do we have to redeem our miles and cash options before they take that away?
Ah well....
So, how long do we have to redeem our miles and cash options before they take that away?
Oct 30, 2008, 4:56 pm
#310
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA Gold (and other non-status plastic)
Posts: 1,889
True, but this has mostly come about in the last 2 years, and as a result of DC opening up to the world and dropping it's pants to create the feeding frenzy that will soon come to an end.
Before that, a good amount of the discussion was on the airline, the airport, the lounges, Irn Bru and trains of course. The hard core of posters from that era are mostly still here - it's just that the increase in numbers in the DC programme has burried the older core board culture. That sub-stratum will become the mainstay of the "bmi" board once again, if all the redemption help, ana, ICC threads are removed to a different place.
Before that, a good amount of the discussion was on the airline, the airport, the lounges, Irn Bru and trains of course. The hard core of posters from that era are mostly still here - it's just that the increase in numbers in the DC programme has burried the older core board culture. That sub-stratum will become the mainstay of the "bmi" board once again, if all the redemption help, ana, ICC threads are removed to a different place.
Oct 30, 2008, 5:01 pm
#311
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: UK
Programs: reformed ex basic Member
Posts: 3,148
I have just done four sectors on LX in economy.. yeah, really.. and if BD ends up like that I'd be very happy. Nice GVA *G lounge btw.
OK, so my speculations..
- expect the exotic routes to go.. it'll be transfers in MUC for anywhere East of Bavaria.
- 'boarding completed' will be the new mantra
- there will be a new range of BD M&M Credit Cards on the horizon
- can they hurry up and buy SK and JK soon as well please.. i have orphan miles to merge.
I'll be giving German lessons this weekend at the Boo Doo in SVQ.
Cheers
OK, so my speculations..
- expect the exotic routes to go.. it'll be transfers in MUC for anywhere East of Bavaria.
- 'boarding completed' will be the new mantra
- there will be a new range of BD M&M Credit Cards on the horizon
- can they hurry up and buy SK and JK soon as well please.. i have orphan miles to merge.
I'll be giving German lessons this weekend at the Boo Doo in SVQ.
Cheers
Oct 30, 2008, 5:06 pm
#312
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2000
Location: London, UK and Southern France
Posts: 18,400
I don't agree. These are very different propositions. They would be similar if LH allowed you to spread the 100K miles over two years, but they don't: you need to do your 100K in one of the two years.
Oct 30, 2008, 5:11 pm
#314
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: BHD/DUB
Programs: BA Gold, TK*G, EI Elite
Posts: 7,622
Oct 30, 2008, 5:13 pm
#315
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: UK
Programs: reformed ex basic Member
Posts: 3,148
I took my own sandwich on board today from LCY, as there is no lounge there, LX give you GBP 4 voucher to spend.. and if you knew me, you'd know my appetite is never satisfied by what you get offered in Y (paid for or free!)