text: Not all big U.S. airlines will survive | The Budapest Business Journal on the web | bbj.hu
  Not all big U.S. airlines will survive
  Tuesday, June 2, 2009, 16:28
  British entrepreneur Richard Branson, founder and president of Virgin Atlantic Airways, said on Tuesday he believes it is unlikely that all big U.S. airlines will survive the next 12 to 18 months.
  "I don't think that the American government will yet again put more billions into the airline industry. They've learned their lessons from the car industry," Branson told Reuters in an interview in Tokyo
  "I just happen to believe it is unlikely that all the big American carriers will survive the next 12 to 18 months," he said, adding that at least two airline companies are vulnerable. Branson did not specify which airlines he was referring to.
  Meanwhile, Branson also said Virgin Atlantic is interested in launching flights between Australia and Tokyo's Haneda Airport, which is currently undergoing a major expansion, in the next 12 to 18 months. (Reuters)