EasyJet became one of the first big companies to reveal it had tapped the government’s emergency loan scheme as it moved to shore up its rapidly eroding cash resources after coming under fresh pressure from its founder, Stelios Haji-Ioannou. The airline said it had taken GBP600m from the Covid Corporate Financing Facility and also drawn down the full $500m from its revolving credit facility. It expected to have cash reserves of GBP2.3b by April 9. The funding boost should help to relieve pressure from Sir Stelios, who warned earlier on Monday that easyJet would run out of money by August if a GBP4.5b order for new aircraft from manufacturer Airbus went ahead. He called on easyJet to oust its chief financial officer. Sir Stelios’ family is the largest shareholder in the airline, with a 34% stake. EasyJet, which grounded its entire fleet last week, has lost nearly two-thirds of its value since the start of the year.<br/>
unaligned
Alaska’s Ravn Air Group, an airline with more than 70 planes, has filed for bankruptcy, saying its business has dried up and it has run out of cash in the wake of the novel coronavirus. The Anchorage-based carrier said it applied for aid last week under the roughly $2t stimulus package recently approved by Congress, but it is unsure whether or when it will get the financing. Government assistance will be key to helping Ravn Air resume operations and rehire the roughly 1,300 employees it has laid off as a result of the pandemic-related business interruptions, the company said Sunday in a filing in US Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del. Formal documents are being finalized, but the regional carrier expects existing lenders including French bank BNP Paribas to provide $12m in financing to help it get through bankruptcy. The company hasn’t ruled out ultimately selling the business or liquidating it, court papers said.<br/>
Icelandair Group is exploring ways to shore up its finances to protect the carrier against a revenue slump as the coronavirus hammers air travel. While the carrier’s liquidity is currently above a $200m minimum level, reduced sales from a scaled back schedule in April and May will leave it vulnerable to breaching the requirement, Icelandair said Monday. Kvika Banki, Islandsbanki and Landsbankinn are advising the carrier on available options. “This will ensure that Icelandair Group will get through these difficult times as smoothly as possible and minimize disruption to the Icelandic tourism industry and economy,” the carrier said. “The company will also work closely with the Icelandic government in the upcoming process.” Icelandair earlier struck an agreement with the state to help cover the cost of flying some routes, broadcaster RUV reported last week. As the “main artery to foreign markets,” the carrier is arguably Iceland’s most important company, so can’t be wiped out, Finance Minister Bjarni Benediktsson said March 23.<br/>
El Al is "likely to close" if the government does not provide financial assistance within the coming days, El Al chairman Eli Defes warned Monday.<br/>Addressing the Knesset's special committee on dealing with the coronavirus, Defes said the company had presented requests to the Finance Ministry worth a total of $350m, in addition to an organizational efficiency plan. "El Al entered the crisis before all the other companies, and its $200m. revenue cycle stopped entirely," said Defes. "El Al is spread out over 30 locations worldwide. If we do not receive immediate help, within the next few days, El Al is likely to close." Negotiations have been ongoing between the Finance Ministry and Israeli airlines for approximately two months, Finance Ministry economist Eli Morgenstern told the Knesset committee. While airlines Israir and Arkia meet the criteria to receive assistance from the government's loan fund for large companies, the scope of El Al's operations requires separate negotiations to receive aid. Morgenstern insisted that a rescue package must include both government-guaranteed and bank-guaranteed loans.<br/>
Dubai is in talks with bankers about shoring up its finances and the nation’s flag carrier is mulling billions of dollars of loans, as the coronavirus pandemic hammers the economy. The government is discussing various options, which could include the nation’s first Eurobond since 2016 and loans, according to people familiar with the matter. “Dubai needs to raise funds to mitigate financing pressures in relation to various state-owned entities,” said Ksenia Mishankina, a senior credit analyst at Union Bancaire Privee in London. A fall in interest rates in the developed world this year “should create conditions of a hunt for yield among investors,” she said. Emirates Airline is reaching out to local and international banks about funding that will be in addition to state aid it received last month, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Emirates Airline, owned by the government, has grounded passenger flights and the Expo 2020 exhibition scheduled for October is set to be delayed by a year. The event was seen as key to boosting an economy that was already growing slowly.<br/>
Swedish carrier Braathens Regional Airlines has filed for protection in order to undergo a restructuring exercise. It has suspended all services with effect from 6 April with the intention of gradually resuming flights “after the summer”, it says, when conditions are expected to have improved. BRA says the decision will give it time to put together a controlled plan for its future operations. The company had previously stated, in mid-March, that it was cutting back services to a minimum level and laying off all personnel. It subsequently disclosed that it would halt all flights until 31 May. But the company says it has “done everything in its power” to adapt, and is resorting to corporate protection and restructuring measures as a result of the “acute” crisis caused by the coronavirus outbreak. “After careful consideration, the company’s board of directors has chosen to apply for restructuring and to freeze the business completely,” says BRA CE Geir Stormorken. “This will give us room to develop a long-term sustainable business plan.”<br/>
Air Deccan, a small regional airline that was once India’s largest low-cost carrier, has become the first airline in the country to fall victim to the coronavirus pandemic. Cirium fleets data shows the airline has just two 19-seater Beechcraft 1900Ds but once boasted Airbus narrowbodies and ATR turboprops. It announced on Sunday it is ceasing operations until further notice. The airline was founded by GR Gopinath, dubbed in one television interview as “the man who got India’s middle class to fly”.<br/>