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Air France KLM is ready to cope with strong demand for travel, the company’s chief executive said on Tuesday, as travellers - hit by delays in recent weeks at airports - hope the global tourism industry can tackle staffing shortages. “We have forecast that the summer will be very strong. We have hired 300 pilots, 300 mechanics. It will take some time to train them and get them ready. We have taken that risk. Our planes are ready to take off,” Smith told BFM Business radio. “At Air France KLM, we are ready. There is a lot of stress, but our teams have done a great job,” he added.<br/>

French-Dutch airline Air France-KLM said on Tuesday it raised around E2.26b through its latest capital increase, with the total demand for new shares amounting close to 2.6b. The proceeds from the rights issue will be mostly used to repay an aid package to the French state, and reduce related financial costs and other debt, the company said, confirming previously announced plans. The airline launched the capital increase — a widely anticipated move — in May as part of its efforts to win shareholder backing to look beyond the pandemic and invest in the resurgent air travel. The issue was led by a big investment from logistics firm CMA CGM, which used it to take a 9% stake in the airline as it bet on growing demand for flying goods globally amid supply chain challenges. The value of the equity stakes held by the French and Dutch governments, however, remained unchanged even after the issue, while a chunk held by China Eastern Airlines was diluted to 4.7% from 9.6% before the capital hike. "The success of our capital increase is a strong demonstration of the confidence that our existing shareholders and new investors have in the prospects of Air France-KLM," said the company's boss, Ben Smith.<br/>

One of Taiwan's major carriers, China Airlines (CAL), said Tuesday that it will start offering more international flights in July, in anticipation of growing demand for air travel in a post-COVID-19 world. Noting that many countries have begun easing their COVID-19 border regulations, CAL said it will gradually increase its passenger flights in the third quarter of the year, with the aim of reaching 150 flights per week, which would be a 40% jump. Starting in July, CAL said, it will operate a daily flight on the its mainstay route between Songshan Airport in Taipei (TSA) and Haneda in Tokyo, using its Airbus A321neo aircraft. In addition, the carrier said, it will schedule more flights to other Japan destinations, including Narita Airport in Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, and Fukuoka. CAL said it will also fly daily to Seoul in South Korea, starting in August. As demand for air travel is expected to grow in the coming months, CAL said, it will expand its flight services to Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Cambodia, Myanmar, Hong Kong, China, the United States, Canada, Germany, Netherlands, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Australia.<br/>

Garuda Indonesia has asked administrators to postpone a vote on the flag carrier’s debt restructuring proposal for two days to June 17, its CE said late on Monday. Garuda creditors had been expected to vote on the restructuring proposal on Wednesday. CEO Irfan Setiaputra said in a statement that a delay was needed to finalise administrative matters and to harmonise the input of stakeholders on the restructuring proposal. Garuda started the court-led restructuring process on Dec. 9, after a vendor petitioned the court over unpaid bills. The court-appointed administrators will discuss the proposed voting delay with the supervising judge, one of the administrators said. “The administrators will carry out voting by taking into account the readiness of the debtor for its restructuring proposal,” Martin Patrick Nagel said. Garuda has offered to replace its liabilities to lessors and Islamic bondholders with new bonds and equity worth $1.13b. The latest verified claims under Garuda’s restructuring process had reached 120.5t rupiah ($8.21b). The airline said on Tuesday that a majority of the holders of its 2t rupiah ($136.26m) asset-backed securities “KIK-EBA Mandiri GIAA 01” had agreed on a tenor extension up to 10 years and a new payment schedule. The securities, which securitised revenue rights from Garuda’s ticket sales on the Jeddah-Medina route, were issued in 2018 with a tenor of five years.<br/>