New BA boss to slash jobs

BRITISH Airways' incoming chief executive Willie Walsh is lining up a series of drastic cost-cutting measures that could make outgoing boss Rod Eddington's hefty cuts pale into insignificance.

Walsh, just nine days into the job, wants to slash BA's 3,500-strong workforce at its head office and intends to introduce a no-frills service on short-haul flights.

He is keen to make his mark in a way that will dwarf Eddington's Future Size and Shape programme, which saved the airline £850m a year after axing 13,000 jobs.

The tough-talking Irishman, who takes over from Eddington in September, has taken charge of the airline's review into its shorthaul operations. Some pointers on the results of the review were expected at BA's full-year results tomorrow, but any update is now at least six months away after Walsh's intervention.

He wants to end business-class tickets on flights to places like Paris and Frankfurt and move bookings online to slash overheads. He was a notorious cost cutter at Irish airline Aer Lingus.

Walsh, who is being viewed internally as a 'tough cookie', wants to 'take the axe' to the 3,500 employees who work at BA's opulent Waterside headquarters, which lies in the shadow of Heathrow.

He believes he can strip out duplicated jobs at Waterside, home to the airline's-commercial, financial, strategic and training arms. This would also allow him to look at disposing parts of the prime 280-acre site.

Walsh, 43, has taken little time in making his presence felt at the airline, which was savaged by Eddington. News of the impending cuts comes a day before BA's results tomorrow, where the 'world's favourite airline' is due to unveil its highest fuel bill in more than a decade due to the massive leap in the price of oil.