Brazil's Azul hopes to take over Avianca Brasil's planes at lower lease rates

Brazilian airline Azul hopes to take over 30 of struggling Avianca Brasil’s aircraft at cheaper lease rates, take control of two-thirds of Avianca’s airport slots and rehire many of its workers, while avoiding its crippling debts and any labor disputes, CE John Rodgerson said Thursday. If the bid is successful, it would restructure the domestic Brazilian air travel market, reducing the number of big players from four to three. It would also allow Azul to become a big competitor in Brazil’s most desirable domestic airports - Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo - which have profitable routes but where available airport slots are hard to come by. Rodgerson said the domestic routes Azul would operate in would represent a “back to the basics” move for the struggling carrier, which expanded to unprofitable international markets in recent years. Avianca Brasil filed for bankruptcy in December after it struggled to meet lease payments on its planes, which led to bitter legal fights to repossess the aircraft. But the carrier had been able to hold on to most of the planes so far. Azul already has a preliminary agreement with Avianca Brasil worth $105 million, which is not enough to cover all the carrier’s current debts. But any takeover of Avianca Brasil’s assets would have to take place through a public auction supervised by a Brazil bankruptcy judge.<br/>