The new management of Mexican airline Interjet has hired a restructuring firm to help overcome its $1.25b of inherited debt as the company looks to restart operations. The airline, now controlled by businessman Alejandro del Valle, has brought on Mexico City-based Argoss Partners to help resolve issues with creditors via a prepackaged bankruptcy and obtain debtor-in-possession financing. Interjet plans to submit a restructuring plan to Mexico’s bankruptcy regulator for review in the coming weeks. Interjet, which halted flights in December, faces numerous hurdles to restarting operations, from unpaid taxes and back salaries to a lack of airplanes -- lessors have repossessed most of the company’s jets except for a handful of Russian Sukhois that have been cannibalized for parts. “We want a prepackaged bankruptcy and to work out the main issues with creditors,” said Carlos Ortiz-Canavate, a partner at Argoss. Another partner, Igor Marzo, said the new Interjet may be much smaller in size and scope than it was previously, when it operated flights across Mexico and the Americas. An important part of Interjet’s debt, which is being examined by the company’s new management, stems from taxes that weren’t paid to the Mexican government in the years before it changed ownership. Ortiz-Canavate said that while Del Valle was aware that money was owed when he bought the company, he was not thoroughly informed about the actual tax “tangle” dragging on Interjet. He said that at least three tax remediation proposals have been submitted to Mexico’s tax authority but have been rejected. The company will continue talks to seek a solution.<br/>
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Portuguese carrier SATA Air Acores has been cleared to take government compensation and liquidity support worth over E267m, but a previous investigation into suspected illegal support measures is being extended. EC regulators have cleared a E12m state grant to SATA Air Acores, as compensation for pandemic-related travel restrictions over March-June last year, plus a further E255.5m in additional liquidity. Any public support in excess of the damage will need to be returned to the government, the Commission states. The government is intending additionally to grant E122.5m to SATA – through public loans or a guarantee – to address urgent liquidity needs until the end of November this year, on top of a E133m liquidity-support package cleared by the Commission in August last year. This is being provided to maintain essential services including public-obligation routes. SATA Air Acores operates inter-island flights while its sister carrier, SATA Group’s Azores Airlines, primarily serves mainland Portuguese and international destinations.<br/>
Stobart Air is to add two new routes linking Dublin and Belfast with Cardiff from the summer. The company, which operates the Aer Lingus Regional routes, said it would begin the Belfast to Cardiff route on June 28th, operating four times a week, while Dublin to Cardiff would commence from August 30th, with three flights a week. The airline said the new routes are subject to a timeline that provides certainty for airlines, airports and customers. Stobart Air has called on governemnt in Ireland and Britain to introduce a vaccine passport system that would allow fully vaccinated people to resume travel. “The aviation industry needs a roadmap and a clear plan for when and how air travel can safely resume in line with vaccination rollout programmes,” said Andy Jolly, MD at Stobart Air. The company also called for cooperation on the recognition of domestic negative Covid-19 tests rather than require passengers to undertake additional pre-departure PCR tests.<br/>
Ryanair and Wizz Air carried slightly more passengers in April than in March though traffic remains vastly down on pre-crisis levels as travel restrictions across Europe continue. The low-cost operators are the first airlines in Europe to disclose traffic data for April. Ryanair carried 1 million passengers in April 2021, compared with 0.5 million in March. Wizz carried just under 565,000 passengers in April, an increase of 85,000. While representing an improvement on the lows of February and March, prior the to crisis Ryanair had carried 13.5m passengers for April 2019 and Wizz 3.3m. Ryanair says it operated 8,000 flights in April 2021 at a load factor of 67%. Wizz operated 22% of its capacity with load factors at 59.2%.<br/>
Emirates will install premium-economy cabins in three of its existing Airbus SE A380 superjumbos as it prepares for an anticipated shift in demand once the airline industry emerges from the coronavirus crisis. The world’s biggest long-haul airline will retrofit the seats -- which offer more room than coach at a cheaper price than business class -- into planes supplied by Amedeo Air Four Plus, the leasing firm said Wednesday. The change should help adapt the Emirates fleet to a post-Covid travel market in which well-heeled leisure passengers may be prepared to pay more for extra personal space amid continuing health concerns, even as demand for business trips remains subdued or switches to less costly options. Though Emirates, the largest A380 operator, said at the end of 2020 that its last few new double-deckers would feature premium economy, President Tim Clark only revealed last month that it would convert older ones. Four-class jets will have 56 premium-economy seats, according a December statement, with the number in coach dropping to 338 to accommodate them. The A380s will still have 76 business and 14 first-class berths.<br/>
Chorus Aviation Inc. has signed a three-year contract with Purolator Inc. for air cargo charter services. The agreement follows the completion of an initial six-month trial. Purolator says the deal complements its existing network and will mean more service options for cross-border shipments. Chorus is best known for its Jazz Aviation subsidiary which provides regional air service for Air Canada, but chief executive Joe Randell says air cargo is a growing area of focus. Under the agreement, Chorus subsidiary Voyageur Aviation Corp. will replace two Dash 8-100 Simplified Package Freighters used for the trial service with two Dash 8-100 Package Freighters.<br/>