A U.S. bankruptcy judge on Thursday approved Spirit Airlines' debt restructuring, clearing the budget airline to convert $795m in debt to equity and emerge from bankruptcy as a private company. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Sean Lane approved the airline's restructuring proposal at a court hearing in White Plains, New York. Spirit's bankruptcy plan cancels existing equity shares and hands ownership to Spirit's lenders, which include investment funds managed by Pacific Investment Management Company, UBS Asset Management and Citadel Advisors. Spirit's bankruptcy deal includes a proposal to raise $350m in additional financing through the sale of new equity shares. The airline has said it expects to emerge from bankruptcy in the first quarter of 2025. "We will emerge as a stronger airline with the financial flexibility to continue providing guests with enhanced travel experiences and greater value," Spirit Airlines CEO Ted Christie said in a statement on Thursday. Spirit recently rejected a proposed acquisition by fellow budget airline Frontier Group, saying the proposed buyout offered less value for Spirit's creditors than the bankruptcy restructuring. Frontier’s latest offer would have allowed Spirit Airlines to retain 19% of the company’s equity. But Spirit said the offer carried additional financial costs, including costs associated with a longer stay in bankruptcy, and more risks, including the risk that U.S. regulators would reject the merger of the two airlines. Lane said on Thursday that he would issue a written decision overruling objections raised by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Office of the U.S. Trustee, which is the U.S. Justice Department's bankruptcy watchdog. The SEC and U.S. Trustee had opposed the way that Spirit's bankruptcy plan released shareholders' and creditors' legal claims against non-debtors, like Spirit's lenders and its executives. Spirit improperly assumed that the creditors gave their "consent" to the deal unless they returned a separate "opt out" form, according to the two government agencies.<br/>
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With the US airline industry buzzing over potential tie-ups, Sun Country Airlines added to the chatter on 20 February by acknowledging that it would view favourably combinations with some competitors. Dave Davis, the discounter’s CFO, said during the Barclays Industrial Select Conference on 20 February that it would consider combining with another airline, describing Sun Country as “pro-M&A” – referring to mergers and acquisitions. ”We think there are combinations with Sun Country that make sense and we continue to look at things,” he says. “It’s certainly not our base plan, but I do believe the industry needs to consolidate on the low-cost side. It feels like some combinations are coming.” Minneapolis-based Sun Country’s cargo operations on behalf of Amazon make matters more complicated, however. ”The uniqueness of our model makes it a little more difficult for us,” he says. ”You know, we’ve got 20 freighters, which is different” from passenger-focused carriers, making some potential tie-ups less straightforward. Sun Country is planning to operate a total of 20 cargo-equipped Boeing 737-800s for Amazon Prime as it takes deliveries of eight freighters this year. Industry momentum seems to be building toward one or more airline combinations, with Frontier Airlines making an aggressive play to acquire Spirit Airlines as it emerges from financial restructuring, and JetBlue Airways recently acknowledging that it is exploring tie-ups with potential partners. <br/>
Sunwing Airlines has cancelled all southbound flights departing from Pearson International Airport for a second day in a row, again citing the need to prioritize the safe return of stranded travellers whose flights were cancelled due to weather disruptions. The airline also cancelled southbound flights at Pearson on Wednesday, though a handful were able to depart as scheduled in the morning hours. Sunwing said in a statement posted to its website that the latest cancellations were made to “prioritize the safe return of customers currently delayed in destinations due to recent weather disruptions, crew availability constraints and extremely limited hotel capacity.” Sunwing is also cancelling southbound flights departing from Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport on Thursday. “This difficult but essential operational decision allows us to redirect our resources toward bringing delayed customers home as quickly and safely as possible,” the statement notes. A total of 27 Sunwing flights were scheduled to depart Pearson International Airport on Thursday. Sunwing says that all affected customers will receive a full refund within 21 business days with “no further action required.”<br/>
Workshops and training for young people are being launched to help them spot the rising number of phishing scams online. Emirates airline is the latest to warn its customers of dummy adverts, following a fake membership offer to enrol in a discounted subscription to fly first class. A phishing scam posing as an advert offering 10 first class flights anywhere in the world for a $300 annual membership fee circulated across social media, prompting Emirates Airline to speak out. “Emirates is aware of fraudulent ads circulating on social media platforms that direct users to websites impersonating our legitimate site,” a representative said. “We urge customers to stay cautious. All official Emirates communications are only shared through our verified channels.” Phishing scams are becoming increasingly sophisticated and rising in number as artificial intelligence tools make it easier for criminals to stage attacks with convincing fakes that mimic legitimate brands. Meanwhile, social engineering to trick users into making security errors or revealing sensitive information is used to exploit people's trust in popular brands and respected companies, making it harder for consumers to recognise scams.<br/>
Supply chains for major planemakers Boeing and Airbus are showing signs of moderate improvement, the CE of Saudi start-up Riyadh Air said on Thursday. Securing adequate parts, for both new and existing planes, has been a major problem for the airline industry in recent years. The causes ranged from general disruption emanating from the COVID-19 pandemic to industrial action at Boeing which caused a seven-week halt to most jet production last fall. "Are there big challenges out there - yes there definitely are. Is the supply chain stretched and under huge stress - yes, and yes," Tony Douglas told an FII Institute event in Miami. "But am I seeing signs of moderate improvement - I honestly have to say, yes I do." Douglas said one continued bottleneck was the suppliers that serve both Boeing and Airbus, which he described as being "one level down". He said Riyadh Air was working to overcome any challenges, without adding further details. Backed by Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund, Riyadh Air has been ordering planes from both manufacturers ahead of its launch. This includes 60 narrow-body A321-family jets from Airbus in October, as well as up to 72 Boeing 787 Dreamliners ordered in March 2023. The airline is currently engaged in a process to select extra wide-body jets, Douglas said, without elaborating further. Douglas told Reuters in October it was planning to talk to Airbus about A350-1000 aircraft and Boeing on its 777X jets.<br/>Riyadh Air is expected to start operations by the end of the year, Douglas told the event. In the October interview, Douglas had guided that it would begin flights in the second half of this year.<br/>
Middle Eastern low-fare carrier SalamAir is seeking another 10 Airbus A320-family aircraft to support operational development. The Omani carrier says the expansion will take place over the next three years and is intended to meet increasing passenger demand. SalamAir has placed requests for the 10 twinjets with “multiple” aircraft lessors, it says. The carrier is bringing in two A321s this year – taking its fleet to 15 – and will grow to 25 aircraft by 2028 under the latest expansion plan. CE Adrian Hamilton-Manns says the airline has “full aircraft” and “more demand than we can meet”. He says that, over the next five years, the airline needs to expand to develop its network and introduce routes to destinations “currently unserved”. “Our low-fare model is highly popular and our plan to [expand the fleet] is a response to the demand that we see for budget travel,” adds Hamilton-Manns. “We see other airlines attempting to move to this market due to the obvious demand that exists. This is positive as competition will reduce fares and benefit the consumer.” SalamAir transported more than 3.2m passengers last year, a 20% rise on 2023 figures.<br/>