Gol airline receives court approval to borrow $350m in bankruptcy

A US bankruptcy judge on Monday allowed Brazilian airline Gol to borrow the first $350m of its proposed bankruptcy financing, which a company attorney said was "desperately" needed to maintain normal operations. US bankruptcy judge Martin Glenn approved the initial funding at a court hearing in Manhattan, despite voicing some concerns about the high cost of the overall $950m loan. Glenn will consider approving the rest of the loan at a future hearing, and said he needs more insight into the financing costs. "I'm not writing a blank check," Glenn said. The loan has an interest rate that currently exceeds 15%, over $235m in additional fees, and additional attorneys' fees that could be added to that cost later, according to court documents. Gol attorney Andrew Leblanc said the initial funding was "desperately needed" to maintain Gol's operations and preserve relationships with the lessors who own Gol's fleet of 141 Boeing (BA.N), opens new tab aircraft and who could stop maintenance work or seek to reclaim airplanes if they are not paid. Gol's Sao Paulo-traded shares tumbled 33.6% on Monday to 3.93 reais, their lowest closing price since Dec. 22, 2016. The company's shares have fallen by almost 50% since local media first reported earlier this month that the company was considering filing for bankruptcy. It now has a market value of 1.65b reais ($333.21m).<br/>