Qantas, private equity? chaos? QRed just went nowhere!

The upheaval in global aviation left Qantas boss Alan Joyce with little choice but to propose a subsidiary Asian carrier, which infuriated the unions. Now the upheaval in global markets, courtesy of Europe’s problems, has reportedly forced him to abandon those plans in favour of an alliance with Malaysia Airlines. And all the while those private equity rumours just won’t go away, such is the state of things at Qantas these days – chaotic.

The European debt crisis looks to have scuttled the controversial plans of Qantas Airways boss Alan Joyce for a separate Asian-based carrier, but it can’t squash rumours of a private equity tilt at the flying kangaroo. According to the Australian Financial Review, the turmoil in Europe has spooked Qantas management and they’re preparing to dump a planned multi-million dollar investment in a subsidiary Asian airline in favour of a less risky alliance with Malaysia Airlines. While unions might claim this as a victory, the paper says Qantas is firm in its stance on the job security claims of the unions.

The news comes after speculation re-emerged over the weekend of a private equity bidder for Qantas . According to The Weekend Australian, former Qantas boss Geoff Dixon and John Singleton considered taking a strategic stake in Qantas three months ago, but were turned off by a darkening outlook for equity markets. The theory is that someone with greater capital firepower might still be hanging around. The indicative $700 million bid by Private Equity Partners for Spotless Group has fuelled rumours of increased private equity activity in the Australian market, despite the obvious turmoil in Europe, and much of it has centred on Qantas . While Dixon wasn’t ready to ride the current market waves with his own money – the paper says investment banker Mark Carnegie, Singleton and Dixon are set to launch a $200 million pub fund instead, which could list on the ASX – in Qantas he said it would not be surprising if other players were taking a look at his former employer.

via BREAKFAST DEALS: Qantas chaos | Alexander Liddington-Cox | Wheels and Deals | Business Spectator.