Norwegian’s creditors are set to take a significant haircut on their debts under a capital-raising exercise the carrier is planning under its restructuring processes. In a 19 February stock-exchange filing, the carrier says it intends to issue NKr1.88b ($221m) of perpetual subordinated convertible bonds and retained claims bonds to creditors. The perpetual bonds will bear an interest rate of six-month Norwegian Inter Bank Offered Rate plus 250 basis points in the first year of issuance, rising to 350bps in the second and third years, 500bps in years four and five, 700bps in years six and seven, and 950bps from year eight. DNB Bank has been appointed as global co-ordinator in respect of the issuance of the financial instruments in connection with the capital raise. Norwegian is also proposing that each creditors be given a debt claim with a nominal value equal to 4% of their unsecured claim. This debt claim on aggregate would, under “certain terms and conditions”, be convertible into shares representing approximately 25% of the airline’s share capital following the restructuring and the proposed capital raise.<br/>
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The belly of the Emirates plane that touched down in Dubai early Sunday from Brussels was stuffed with precious cargo: tens of thousands of doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. The arrival was part of an effort by the Middle East's biggest airline to pivot from shuttling people to shipping cargo — and grabbing a central role in the global vaccine delivery race. As the coronavirus pandemic continues to clobber the aviation industry, the disaster has hit long-haul carriers like Emirates hardest. So the airline is ferrying around the very substance it hopes will get passengers back into its seats and revive the flagging travel sector. Over the weekend, workers scurried around the tarmac at the Dubai International Airport, unloading several aluminum containers crammed with vaccine vials and dry ice into a vast florescent-lit cargo terminal. The key transit hub, previously used for the global shipment of pharmaceuticals, is now at the center of a growing vaccine supply network based in the UAE. Emirates already has delivered millions of doses to Latin America, South Africa and Egypt from major manufacturing hubs in India and elsewhere. With 15,000 square meters of refrigerated storage space, the sprawling facility can help maintain the required temperature controls for two of the leading COVID-19 vaccines that use the new vaccine technology messenger RNA, or mRNA. <br/>
Kuwait’s Jazeera Airways is considering ordering 13 narrow-body jets, its chairman told Reuters on Monday, tempted by the possibility of picking up planes on discount from manufacturers seeking buyers following cancelled orders. The budget carrier has long mulled an aircraft order to expand and replace its fleet of leased Airbus, but decided against going head with such a deal as recently as 2019. “We have put in place a five-year plan in which the number of our fleet aircraft will increase from 17 to 30 aircraft within five years ending in 2025,” Chairman Marwan Boodai said. He said the airline could pick up aircraft that were had been built for clients who later cancelled their orders or went bust, commonly known in the industry as white tails. “It will depend on prices,” Boodai said, adding that it could also lease the new aircraft. Previously, Jazeera had considered acquiring Airbus A320s and A220s, Boeing 737s and Embraer E2s. The airline on Monday reported a full-year net loss of 26.4m dinar ($87.3m). <br/>
Air Arabia will launch direct flights from Cairo to Muscat starting March 11. Passengers can now book on these flights by visiting Air Arabia’s website, by calling the call centre or through travel agencies. Last month, the Sharjah-based carrier relaunched daily services to Doha after three years. Air Arabia added a total of 14 new routes to its network in 2020 from its operating hubs in the UAE, Morocco and Egypt. Two weeks ago, the airline reported a loss of Dh192m for the full-year ending December 31, 2020. However, the company posted a Q4 profit of Dh20m.<br/>
Tunisia’s transport minister Monday fired the CEO of Tunisair, just over a month after naming her to revive the ailing national carrier’s fortunes. Olfa Hamdi, an engineer educated in France and the US with experience in managing major enterprises, was dismissed because she failed “in her duty to act discreetly” and did not coordinate with the ministry, Transport Minister Moez Chakchouk said. Hamdi had clashed with the powerful UGTT union, publishing details of union dues on Facebook. The state-owned airline is heavily indebted and subsidised by the public purse. It employs around 7,800 staff, for a fleet of less than 30 planes, of which only a maximum of eight are currently operational, according to the ministry.<br/>
The battle between Virgin Australia and Qantas for domestic travel is starting to heat up, with Virgin Australia announcing it will add two new routes in March, while increasing capacity on some other routes. The airline will add a Melbourne-Ballina Byron route for Easter, from March 29 to April 25, as well as an Adelaide-Sunshine Coast route during the same period. The Byron Bay flight will operate "up to" six times a week according to the airline, with Adelaide-Sunshine Coast four times a week. Virgin will also increase frequency to several key holiday destinations including Cairns, Hamilton Island, Whitsunday Coast (Proserpine), Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast, Ballina Byron (Byron Bay), Launceston, Hobart, Broome and Kununurra. The airline cited the roll out of the COVID-19 vaccine and the end of Victoria's five-day lockdown in its statement about the increased services. "We have all worked hard to get to a place where we can enjoy these travel opportunities once again, with the added benefit of supporting vital jobs in our tourism destinations," said Virgin Australia Group CE Jayne Hrdlicka. The announcement of the Adelaide route comes as the airline unveiled its lounge at Adelaide Airport, the first to feature a new design and menu.<br/>