The Wire

The government has softened the sale of Qantas by insisting that the new owners promise to do certain things, like continue to service regional Australia and honour the Frequent Flyers program that so many Aussies are signed up to. Peter Somerville from the Australian International Pilots Association says its a deal they will easily be able to get out of by devolvoing services to other entities not bound by the deed. As for the Frequent Flyer points Clifford Reichlin from Frequent Flyers.com says he believes in the long term the program will be sold off by the new owners and the points devalued.