Bloomberg Air France-KLM won European Union approval for a 7 billion-euro ($7.7 billion) French aid package that Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said will lead to cutbacks in domestic services. The carrier obtained a state guarantee and a subordinated shareholder loan, a financial life line executives say was needed for its survival in the face of a collapse in revenue ...
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Norwegian owners approve crisis plan after bond deal
Bloomberg Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA’s shareholders approved a restructuring plan that will qualify the struggling carrier for state aid and keep it afloat in the coming months. After the company clinched a deal with creditors following intense talks through the weekend, shareholders approved the plan at an extraordinary general meeting on Monday, according to a statement. The restructuring will see ...
Read More »Lufthansa expects to reach pact on government aid soon
Bloomberg Deutsche Lufthansa AG’s management will face investors on Tuesday as the company races to finalise terms of a multibillion-euro bailout from the German government. Over the weekend, Chief Executive Officer Carsten Spohr told employees that the discussions are moving towards a conclusion. The bailout is expected to stretch to 10 billion euros ($11 billion), with the state likely to ...
Read More »Ryanair to slash 3,000 jobs, challenges $33b in state aid
Bloomberg Ryanair Holdings Plc will cut 3,000 jobs and said it will challenge some 30 billion euros ($33 billion) in state aid being doled out to keep its European competitors afloat during the coronavirus pandemic. The Irish discount carrier added to a mounting employment toll that includes 12,000 cuts at British Airways and 5,000 at SAS AB. The reductions represent ...
Read More »Virgin Australia draws 20 suitors in race for sale by June
Bloomberg Virgin Australia Holdings Ltd attracted at least 20 potential buyers as administrators race to sell the airline within two months. Administrators at Deloitte want binding offers in June and are targeting a deal by the end of that month, according to a statement after the first meeting of creditors. Indicative bids are due mid-May. Virgin Australia collapsed owing A$6.84 ...
Read More »South Africa seeking new carrier from ashes of state airline
Bloomberg South Africa is seeking to create a new thriving national airline out of the ashes of its current state-owned carrier, which is technically insolvent and on the brink of being placed in liquidation by administrators. An ideal replacement for South African Airways (SAA) would have both public and private owners, maintain the country’s trade connections and make a profit, ...
Read More »Japan Air posts loss, pulls dividend amid virus
Bloomberg Japan Airlines Co posted its first quarterly operating loss in at least eight years and suspended its annual dividend as the coronavirus outbreak hits the travel industry. Fourth-quarter operating loss was 19.5 billion yen ($183 million), the first deficit since the company re-listed on the stock exchange in 2012. Sales fell 21% to 280 billion yen, JAL said. The ...
Read More »IAG’s Spanish airlines tap $1.1bn state-backed loan
Bloomberg British Airways owner IAG tapped $1.1 billion in state-backed loans for its Spanish units Iberia and Vueling to help weather collapsing travel demand. The banks involved in the syndicated agreement will ask state-owned Instituto de Crédito Oficial to provide guarantees, and the financing is conditional on those being received, London-based IAG said. The move comes as a surprise after ...
Read More »British Airways to cut up to 12,000 jobs in survival fight
Bloomberg IAG SA will slash the work force at its flagship British Airways by almost 30% in a painful restructuring aimed at shrinking the airline group for a downturn that could last for years. IAG shares fell as much as 6% on Wednesday, after the airline group said that as many as 12,000 jobs will be lost at the UK’s ...
Read More »Scandinavia’s SAS cuts 5,000 jobs
Bloomberg Scandinavia’s biggest network airline, SAS AB, is eliminating as many as 5,000 jobs, marking the first permanent staff cuts by a major European carrier in the face of collapsing travel demand. The Stockholm-based company said that the dismissals, amounting to 40% of the workforce, are necessary because employees have an average notice period of six months and it needs ...
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