Planets not aligning for Willie Walsh’s bold bid

Timing is everything for Willy Walsh. Recent opinion has suggested that Willy Walsh’s otherwise excellent proposition is a victim of timing, namely the upcoming election.

But could he be the author of his own undoing? In October 2014, he told a newspaper: “I have no designs on Aer Lingus.”

What changed in two months? The departure of Christoph Mueller? The upholding of the Court of Appeal decision against Ryanair? The settlement of the pensions dispute? Were these too much to resist for the bold Willy?