South African state airline SA Express under bankruptcy protection

South African state airline SA Express is under a form of bankruptcy protection known as business rescue, a spokeswoman for the airline said Thursday. Her comments come after SA Express lost a court battle with a contractor, logistics firm Ziegler, earlier this month. SA Express, which flies to domestic and regional destinations, is a separate business from much larger state carrier South African Airways (SAA), which entered business rescue in December. Under business rescue, a restructuring expert takes over the management of a distressed company to try to salvage the business or at least deliver a better return to creditors than a formal liquidation. “The business rescue process is well-coordinated with no disruptions to customers and employees,” SA Express said.<br/>