That was Mr. Ingraham’s answer when asked whether the government still planned to move ahead with selling the national airline, which continues to face financial burdens.
"Yes, Bahamasair’s aircraft are aged and yes we have to make some decisions," the prime minister also said during his "Meet the Press" event at the British Colonial Hilton Hotel.
"We are waiting for the suggestions from the board of Bahamasair. We’ll consider their recommendations and make some determinations about Bahamasair and the way forward. The way forward I think it is fair to say will include the acquisition of some aircraft."
In an earlier interview, Minister of Tourism and Aviation Neko Grant told the Journal, "I believe privatization can make Bahamasair the success that it can and ought to be."
He added that privatization would reduce the burden on the taxpayer.
"Over the past several years, millions of dollars has been allocated to fund Bahamasair. [In 2006, an estimated] $10 million was allocated," Minister Grant revealed.
"Obviously, a comprehensive plan has got to be done as it relates to privatization which will benefit the Bahamas in its entirety."
Former Minister of Works Bradley Roberts, who at one time had Bahamasair under his ministerial umbrella, had announced in the House of Assembly that the airline would have been sold by the summer of 2005.
But this did not happen, even though the then government paid consultants $1 million to prepare the airline for privatization.
In 2005, the government went as far as inviting expressions of interest from entities and individuals wishing to participate in the ownership and operation of Bahamasair.
The Ministry of Works had said that submissions should include a profile of the entity or individual wishing to invest in the national flag carrier, including financial and technical qualifications.
The government never made public the million-dollar consultancy report, but the preliminary report that was obtained by the Bahama Journal pointed to challenges and opportunities that have for years been outlined by various boards of Bahamasair.
McKinsey and Co., which is reportedly the world’s largest management consultancy firm, said in that preliminary report that Bahamasair could significantly improve its financial performance by successfully capitalizing on certain opportunities.
The airline was advised to improve operational performance by fixing on-time performance to reduce costs and capture more market share; improve revenue management to achieve higher yields; and minimize crew downtime.
Bahamasair was also advised to increase labour productivity and right size its present fleet by choosing appropriate aircraft better scaled to demand.
The consultants noted that Bahamasair’s operating unit costs per hour for a DH-8 aircraft (50 seats) is $1,616, but would only be $832 per hour for B1900 aircraft (19 seats).
"For longer flights, the cost advantage of the B1900 is even greater," the consultants noted.
McKinsey and Co. said there is excess capacity in the system even during peak seasons.
The firm also noted that the break-even load factor for Bahamasair is 65 percent, but the overall load factor is only 51 percent.
Only one month in fiscal year 2004 did the airline exceed 65 percent, the consultants noted, adding that even peak flights during peak periods rarely exceed 70 percent average load factor.
The consultants pointed out that no airline could make money flying excess capacity all of the time.
At the announcement of the $1 million contract between the consultancy firm and the government, Minister Roberts had said several investors had already expressed interest in purchasing the airline, but would have to wait until the consultant firm had completed its recommendations so that a suitable price could have been worked out for the potential investors.
- Austin DWI - New York DWI