Turbulent Times for Swissair

It seemed like a great idea at the time. Swissair, a midsize airline ranked seventh in Europe, had run out of room to grow given its tiny domestic market. So it began buying minority interests in smaller European airlines in hopes of boosting traffic. But the plan hit major turbulence: so many of the new partners were hemorrhaging money that Swissair reported a $1.8 billion loss on $10 billion in revenues last year. "With a clear head, it does seem like a crazy strategy," says Andy Chu, an airline...