British Airways today dismissed as ludicrous an actuary's suggestion the carrier would need to declare bankruptcy to clear its pensions deficit. 'This is the most ludicrous proposal imaginable to resolve our pension deficit.
'It will come as no surprise to those people living in the real world that this is not an option under consideration,' BA said in a statement.
The airline was responding to comments from Donald Duval, chief actuary of pensions adviser Aon Consulting, who said the airline may need to go into bankruptcy to restructure, a path followed by several US carriers. His comments were carried in UK media reports.
'We are one of the most profitable airlines in the world, our half-year operating profit was £437m,' BA said. 'We have nearly £2 billion cash in the bank. We want to find an acceptable solution to the pensions deficit that secures pensions for our staff and the future of our business,' it added.
