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Kenya Airways has secured the backing of its minority shareholders to issue more shares and convert some debt into equity, it said Monday, despite the opposition of some local lenders. The heavily indebted carrier said in June the financial restructuring plan would help cut debt, reduce finance costs, and help it stay afloat after years of losses. The airline wants 11 local banks to convert their debt into shares through a special purpose vehicle, which will become the second largest shareholder when the restructuring is completed. To do this the airline will increase the number of shares in issue from 1.5b to 7b, board adviser Mbuvi Ngunze told a news conference after a special meeting where small shareholders backed the plan. But some local banks had filed a court case objecting to the plan to turn their debt into equity, he said. "We have been asked not to comment about it (court case), for good reason, but we are optimistic we will have the right approvals to finalise," he said.<br/>

On Sunday, Delta took delivery of its first next generation Airbus A350-900 airliner. Delta's first A350 arrived at its base in Atlanta just after 2:00 am on Sunday following a delivery flight from Airbus headquarters in Toulouse, France. Upon arrival, the plane was greeted by a ceremonial water cannon salute before pulling up to a gate. The new wide-body jet is one of the 25 A350s Delta ordered in 2014 and is the first of five Airbus will deliver to the airline this year. In May, Delta announced that it is deferring delivery of 10 A350s by at least two to three years. The Airbus A350 entered service in early 2015 with Qatar Airways and is now in operation with roughly a dozen airlines around the world. However, Delta will be the aircraft's first operator in North America. <br/>