C'mon, who really believes Alitalia has a chance of surviving? Is it a meek Christian ready to be mauled and mashed in Rome's Colosseum, or a bold gladiator, poised to fight for its right to exist.
Frankly, it's amazing the airline has lasted so long in its current form and with its current cost base.
Now don't get me wrong, I've got a soft spot for the airline. I recall some fond memories of press trips in the early 1990s to Rome to hear the Alitalia management team - led then by a certain Mr Giovanni Bisignani - discuss their performance. And it was a pretty decent performance too.
New chairman Maurizio Prato has a Herculean task in turning its latest, latest, latest, latest business plan into something that can rescue Alitalia. Paul Betts from the FT outlines the challenge very neatly, while in the September issue of Airline Business Rigas Doganis spelt out just why the government needs to get its mitts off the airline.
But is it all too little, too late? Much as I hate to say it, I think it is.
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