unaligned

Activist investor Elliott Investment Management and Southwest Airlines are close to a settlement deal that would give Elliott a sizable representation on the company’s board, according to a person familiar with the matter. The settlement could be announced as soon as Thursday, said the person. Spokespeople for Elliott and Southwest declined to comment. Elliott and Southwest as recently as last week had been girding up for a proxy fight. The activist had been seeking to install 10 new directors to the carrier’s board and had called for a special meeting in December to elect them. Elliott’s campaign hinged in large part on the removal of Executive Chairman Gary Kelly and CEO Bob Jordan. Elliott had said Kelly and Jordan, both three-decade Southwest veterans, should be replaced. In September, Southwest said Kelly would step down next spring, but the airline’s board has staunchly backed Jordan. CNBC could not learn whether Jordan would remain as CE under the terms of the potential deal, which was reported earlier by Bloomberg. The two sides have gone back and forth with potential settlement offers over the last few months, Southwest has previously said, but until Saturday, when news broke that a settlement deal was in the offing, there was no indication that a deal was possible.<br/>

Spirit Airlines Inc. is in talks with Frontier Group Holdings Inc. about filing for bankruptcy to facilitate a takeover by the rival discount carrier, according to people with knowledge of the matter. An attempt to sell Spirit via Chapter 11 would likely need the advanced approval of the airline’s creditors in order to fast-track the process so that it can emerge without pausing operations or burning through the rest of its dwindling cash. Early-stage discussions between the air carriers have involved working out terms that holders of Spirit’s roughly $2.5b of debt will agree to, said the people, who asked not to be named discussing private negotiations. The Wall Street Journal previously reported that the companies were in talks. Spirit is staring down a liquidity crisis after its earlier attempt to merge with JetBlue Airways Corp. was blocked on antitrust grounds, and subsequent efforts targeting a rescue by creditors hit a wall. The renewed attempt to join forces with another carrier is expected to garner less scrutiny given Frontier’s smaller size and lesser overlap with Spirit, industry watchers say. In recent talks kicking off the effort, Spirit’s advisers sought feedback from certain creditors on what terms they would approve for a consensual bankruptcy plan. Spirit’s debt includes about $1b in so-called loyalty bonds — 8% notes due 2025 that are backed by claims on elements of the company’s frequent-flyer program — and $500m in unsecured convertible bonds due 2026.<br/>

Air Transat says it is laying off as many as 400 flight attendants, but plans to bring them back to work at some point, a move one expert called “a little unusual.” Montreal-based international tour operator Transat A.T. Inc., which runs the Air Transat airline, confirmed in an email to CTVNews.ca Wednesday that the temporary layoffs will affect 350 to 400 staff starting Nov. 1. "The layoffs are temporary due to the seasonality of our airline operations and a capacity reduction announced earlier this year and specifically concern our flight attendants," according to the corporate statement provided to CTVNews.ca. "We plan to recall staff in due course as soon as our flight schedule allows." The company said it has used this measure several times before, noting the move complies with the collective agreement and "is common in the industry." For instance, it said an average of 455 flight attendants were temporarily laid off per year from 2010 to 2016. It said before the layoffs the company offered staff members "several mitigation measures," such as unpaid leave and a reduced schedule. When CTVNews.ca asked whether the layoffs would affect flights and the airline’s ability to meet its legal obligations to passengers, Air Transat said the measure would not affect service. “There is no impact on our airline activities, operations or flight schedule,” company spokesperson Andréan Gagné wrote in an email Wednesday. “We have all the crew members we need to operate our flight program, with the same level of service known to Transat.”<br/>

Mexican airline Volaris posted a profit of $37m as it continued to deal with fallout relating to the Pratt & Whitney engine inspections that have affected its Airbus A320-family fleet. Revenue at the Mexico City-based ultra-low-cost carrier (ULCC) eased 4% to $813m, while expenses also fell, by 15%, to $687m, the company said on 23 October. The declines were due to 14.4% lower capacity as measured in available seat miles a result of the Pratt & Whitney inspection recall. “Volaris’ third quarter results demonstrate the resilience of our business model and our focus on execution as we have successfully navigated one year of Pratt & Whitney’s engine inspections,” says CE Enrique Beltranena. “We strategically managed capacity while providing great ULCC service to our customers and reinforcing our position as the preferred airline in our core markets. Booking trends continue to show strength throughout the fall and the holiday high season, therefore we remain committed to achieving our updated full-year guidance.” That guidance has the company’s capacity down about 13% over the full year. Previously, it had said capacity will be 14% lower. <br/>

A captain of an Aer Lingus Boston-bound flight turned the aircraft around over the Atlantic Ocean after being informed that a male passenger had inappropriately touched a teenage girl sitting beside him on the flight, a court has heard. At Ennis District Court today, a 57-year-old Co Galway man appeared in connection with being charged with two counts of sexually assaulting the then 16-year-old girl on board the E1 135 Shannon to Boston flight on November 15th, 2023. Det Gda Ruth O’Sullivan told the court the cost to Aer Lingus of returning the Boston-bound aircraft to Shannon was E28,213. Giving an outline of the alleged sexual assaults, Det Gda O’Sullivan said the flight had departed Shannon at about 2.30pm. She said that an hour into the transatlantic flight, at about 3.30pm, a young girl informed cabin crew that a male passenger sitting beside her had touched her inappropriately. Story has details.<br/>

Pakistan is hoping to finalize both the delayed privatization of its flag carrier and the outsourcing of Islamabad's international airport in November, the country's finance minister said Wednesday. Muhammad Aurangzeb, who took office earlier this year, spoke to AFP at the World Bank's headquarters in Washington, where he is attending the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. During a previous interview with AFP in April, Aurangzeb had said he hoped the privatization of the government-owned Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) could be completed by June 2024. Speaking Wednesday, the finance minister said the five-month delay was down to two factors: ensuring macroeconomic stability, and doing the proper due diligence of the interested parties. "The reality is, when any foreign investor comes in, or even the local investor, who are going to put in a substantial amount of money, they want to ensure that the foundation is there," he said, referring to macroeconomic factors. Aurangzeb noted that potential bidders for both PIA and Islamabad airport also required scrutiny, another factor in the delay. "Therefore it's ultimately the cabinet which approved the extension in the timelines so people can do their due diligence before they make these submissions," he said. Aurangzeb said Pakistan had been behind on existing profit and dividend repayments when the current government took office, and had taken steps to remedy that after making progress on macroeconomic stability.<br/>

Malaysia's Capital A said on Wednesday it has terminated a $1.15b deal to list its brand management unit on the Nasdaq via a SPAC merger and also proposed plans for a capital reduction of its shares. Investment firm Capital A, which recently got shareholder approval to sell its aviation unit, budget carrier AirAsia, said it will soon submit plans for the capital reduction to "set off" its losses, aiming to exit its Practice Note 17 (PN17) status. PN17, or financially distressed, is a classification imposed by Malaysia's stock exchange. Firms under this status may be de-listed from the exchange if they fail to stabilise their finances within a set time frame. The travel and lifestyle conglomerate has also abandoned a deal to list its brand management unit, Capital A International, in the Nasdaq via a $1.15b merger with a SPAC called Aetherium Acquisition Corp. A SPAC (special purpose acquisition company), or blank-check firm, is a publicly listed shell company that raises funds to merge with a private company. The deal, which was finalised in February, was terminated as Aetherium Acquisition received a delisting notice from the Nasdaq in June, Capital A said. The company added it will revisit plans to list its units in the U.S. after its financial regularization plans are implemented.<br/>