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In granting bankruptcy protection, the National Company Law Tribunal in New Delhi ordered a moratorium on Go First's assets and leases. But bankruptcy protection supersede lessors' repossession requests. Go First's lessors also include SMBC Aviation Capital and CDB Aviation's GY Aviation Leasing. Its voluntary seeking of bankruptcy protection to renegotiate contracts and debt marks a first for an Indian airline, and Chief Executive Officer Kaushik Khona, who was present as the order was read, hailed the tribunal's decision as "historic". The Indian tribunal said the new resolution professional will take "all necessary steps including the execution of the arbitral award".

This is the first time an Indian airline has voluntarily sought bankruptcy protection to renegotiate contracts and debt. But if bankruptcy protection is granted, those laws supersede lessors' repossession requests. Go First's lessors include major global names such as Jackson Square Aviation, SMBC Aviation Capital and CDB Aviation's GY Aviation Leasing. Two advisers to some lessors said there were major concerns that the granting of bankruptcy protection for Go First could force the lessors to embark on lengthy litigation to repossess planes. The person added that the development could lead to higher lease rates for Indian airlines in the future.

India has made it easier for lessors to take back planes if airlines default on payments after joining an international treaty known as the Cape Town Convention. But lack of a proper legislation to enforce the treaty means India's bankruptcy law will supersede lessors' repossession requests, lawyers said. Go First's lessors include major global names such as Jackson Square Aviation, SMBC Aviation Capital and CDB Aviation's GY Aviation Leasing. Bigger rivals IndiGo (INGL.NS) and Tata Group's Air India are charting major expansion plans with hundreds of new planes on order as domestic air travel in India surpasses pre-pandemic levels. Air India did not immediately respond.

☆ India's Go Airlines asks tribunal to urgently pass order on insolvency plea
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] The logo of GoAir airline on an A320neo aircraft in Colomiers near Toulouse, France, November 15, 2019. REUTERS/Regis DuvignauBENGALURU, May 8 (Reuters) - Go Airlines (India) on Monday asked the country's company law tribunal to urgently pass an order on its insolvency plea, citing lessors' efforts to take back planes, per the court hearing. The push comes less than a week after the cash-strapped Indian airline filed for bankruptcy, blaming "faulty" Pratt & Whitney engines for the grounding of about half its fleet. On Monday, Go First lawyers told the tribunal to urgently pass an order on the airline's insolvency plea, saying its lessors had moved to repossess the planes even as bankruptcy proceedings were ongoing. Meanwhile, Pratt & Whitney told a New Delhi arbitrator hearing its dispute with Go that the Indian airline’s claim of defective engines causing its demise was “astounding” and without evidence.

The cash-strapped airline wants the tribunal to accept its plea and is seeking an interim moratorium to save its assets, a move the lessors oppose. Go First did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the lessors' bid to deregister the planes. Engine failures have cost the airline 108 billion rupees ($1.3 billion) in lost revenue and expenses, it said. Amid the dispute between the lessors and the troubled airline, banks with exposure to it are awaiting the tribunal's decision to decide their next course of action, two people involved in the talks told Reuters. The company owes financial creditors 65.21 billion rupees ($798 million), its bankruptcy filing showed, and had not defaulted on any of those dues by the end of April.

NEW DELHI, May 3 (Reuters) - India's Wadia Group, the owner of cash-strapped Go Airlines (India) Ltd, is completely committed to the company, and has no plans to exit it, the airline's chief executive said on Wednesday. The news came a day after the airline, recently rebranded as Go First, filed for bankruptcy, blaming "faulty" Pratt & Whitney (P&W) engines for the grounding of about half its fleet. The insolvency proceedings were aimed at reviving the airline and not selling it, Chief Executive Kaushik Khona told Reuters in an interview, adding that the company had made all payments to Pratt & Whitney. The airline was also looking to engage with lessors to dissuade them from taking any action, he added. Reporting by Tanvi Mehta and Chris Thomas; Editing by Clarence FernandezOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ IndiGo shares surge after smaller rival Go First files for bankruptcy
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BENGALURU, May 3 (Reuters) - Shares of India's largest airline IndiGo (INGL.NS) surged over 8% on Wednesday as smaller rival Go First's bankruptcy filing raised hopes of market share gains and improved yields. Cash-strapped airline Go First filed for bankruptcy on Tuesday, blaming "faulty" Pratt & Whitney engines for the grounding of about half its fleet and taking lenders by surprise. Lenders to Go First, including Central Bank of India (CBI.NS), Bank of Baroda (BOB.NS), IDBI Bank (IDBI.NS) and Axis Bank (AXBK.NS) dropped 1.1% to 6.8% on Wednesday. Go First owes financial creditors 65.21 billion rupees ($798 million), its bankruptcy filing showed. Bombay Burmah Trading (BBRM.NS), which is also owned by Wadia and has given loans to Go First in the form of inter-corporate deposits, slid 10%.

☆ Go First bankruptcy isn’t the end of the Indian airline, says owner
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

His comments came a day after the cash-strapped Indian airline filed for bankruptcy, blaming “faulty” Pratt & Whitney (P&W) engines for the grounding of about half its fleet. The airline owed financial creditors 65.21 billion Indian rupees ($797 million), its bankruptcy filing showed. Boon for rivalsGo First’s bankruptcy may boost airfares in India and give other domestic airlines a chance to grab a larger chunk of the market share, analysts said. Share prices of India’s largest airline, IndiGo, were up 5.1% on Wednesday, after rising as much as 8.2% earlier. Lenders to Go First, including Central Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, IDBI Bank and Axis Bank, fell on Wednesday.

☆ India's Go First Airways owes financial creditors $798 million - filing
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Arpan Chaturvedi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MUMBAI, May 2 (Reuters) - Indian airline Go First, which filed for bankruptcy on Tuesday, owes financial creditors 65.21 billion Indian rupees ($798 million), its bankruptcy filing showed. "However, considering the present financial situation of the corporate applicant, defaults to financial creditors would be imminent," the filing said. The filing lists Central Bank of India (CBI.NS), Bank of Baroda (BOB.NS), IDBI Bank (IDBI.NS), Axis Bank (AXBK.NS) and Deutsche Bank among Go First's financial creditors. The airline's total liabilities to all creditors stand at 114.63 billion rupees, the filing shows. The company has defaulted on payments to operational creditors, including 12.02 billion rupees to vendors and 26.60 billion rupees to aircraft lessors.

Boeing has more than 130 completed MAX jets in inventory for Chinese customers worth more than $15 billion at list prices, although airlines typically receive substantial discounts. The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) on April 14 released the second revision of its 737 evaluation report which incorporates updates to 737 MAX training and technical information. Chinese airlines begun returning the MAX to service in January led by China Southern (600029.SS) and as of April, all Chinese MAX operators have resumed flight operations, with 45 of 95 MAX jets now back in service, Calhoun said. China Eastern (600115.SS) and China Southern said in March they would resume taking delivery of MAX jets this year, without providing further details. The CAAC report is a reason for "incremental" optimism on MAX momentum in China, Myles Walton of Wolfe Research wrote in to a note to investors.

U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman in Manhattan found the defendant AirBridgeCargo Airlines LLC and its parent Volga-Dnepr Logistics BV liable, after the invasion and resulting sanctions left the plaintiff BOC Aviation unable to reclaim the aircraft. BOC Aviation said AirBridgeCargo went into default after being unable to maintain required reinsurance coverage. This followed restrictions imposed by the European Union against Russian carriers on aircraft used in Russia, and Russian sanctions on foreign assets, including internationally leased aircraft. BOC Aviation said it was able to recover one leased plane and two of its four engines, while the two other planes and two other engines remained in Russia. The case is BOC Aviation Ltd v AirBridgeCargo Airlines LLC et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No.

U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman in Manhattan found the defendant AirBridgeCargo Airlines LLC and its parent Volga-Dnepr Logistics BV liable, after the invasion and resulting sanctions left the plaintiff BOC Aviation unable to reclaim the aircraft. A lawyer for Singapore-based BOC Aviation had no immediate comment, having yet to hear from his client. BOC Aviation said AirBridgeCargo went into default after being unable to maintain required reinsurance coverage. BOC Aviation said it was able to recover one leased plane and two of its four engines, while the two other planes and two other engines remained in Russia. The case is BOC Aviation Ltd v AirBridgeCargo Airlines LLC et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No.

☆ Russia's biggest airline reportedly sends first plane to Iran for repairs as sanctions cut off access to new replacement parts
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Britney Nguyen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Russia's biggest airline reportedly sent a plane to Iran for the first time for maintenance. Boeing and Airbus both stopped supplying Russian airlines with spare parts as part of the sanctions last spring. Aircraft lessors in the European Union were required to end contracts with Russian airlines last March. Analysts predicted Russia could start "cannibalizing" its fleet of planes for parts as Western sanctions blocked suppliers from sending parts and providing repairs for Russian airplanes. Russia reportedly signed an agreement with Iran last July to supply Russian airlines with Iranian airplane parts, and for Iran to provide maintenance and repairs for Russian aircraft.

[1/2] An Air India Airbus A320 plane is seen at the Boryspil International Airport upon arrival, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak outside Kiev, Ukraine May 26, 2020. "India is now at that inflection point," Scindia said during an interview at his office in New Delhi. "We are going to see an explosion of air traffic in India in the years to come," he said, adding he wanted domestic carriers to look at international expansion with greater focus. Air India last month placed a record order for 470 jets and is making an aggressive push in the international market. Scindia said India was not looking at increasing air traffic quotas with Gulf states and instead wanted Indian carriers to offer non-stop long haul flights on larger planes.

[1/2] A logo of Airbus is seen at the entrance of its factory in Blagnac near Toulouse, France, July 2, 2020. But whereas this makes up some 12% of market forecasts for Boeing's 2023 deliveries, Airbus has secured just 9% of its 2023 target of 720 jets, below the trend for this time of year. After missed targets in 2022, Airbus Chief Executive Guillaume Faury has told executives that 2023 will be "make or break" for the company's industrial reputation, industry sources said. In February, Airbus delivered 46 jets, up from 20 in January, for a total of 66 in the first two months of 2023. Lessors have said both jetmakers are delivering planes three-to-six months late, though Airbus is pushing to maintain higher industrial output.

NEW DELHI, March 10 (Reuters) - Boeing Co (BA.N) said on Friday it would set up a facility in India to convert 737 passenger planes into dedicated freighters to tap into regional and global demand for the service. The investment, which adds to the U.S. manufacturer's expansion into India on top of a record plane order by flag carrier Air India, comes despite a global economic slowdown that has weakened the global air cargo market. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) said global cargo demand in January fell almost 15% year-on-year. He did provide any details about when the facility would be set up or the size of the investment. The planned facility comes amid a push by Boeing to expand in India, including a $24 million investment to set up a logistics centre for aircraft parts.

☆ Shares in Brazil's Azul soar as carrier sees bluer sky ahead
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( Gabriel Araujo | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Other travel-related companies in Latin America's largest economy also soared, with shares in fellow carrier Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes SA (GOLL4.SA) and travel agency CVC Brasil (CVCB3.SA) rising 23% and 16%, respectively. The company also scrapped its forecast for roughly 3 billion reais cash burn in 2023. Azul expects to generate record revenue of 20 billion reais ($3.84 billion) this year and record earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) of more than 5 billion reais, roughly 40% above 2019 pre-pandemic levels, Rodgerson said. Non-adjusted figures, nonetheless, showed a positive bottom line of 231.2 million reais, reversing the previous year's loss. Total operating revenue rose 19.4% to 4.45 billion reais in the period, slightly below analysts' forecasts, while EBITDA matched expectations at 1.1 billion, up 6.9%.

IndiGo, owned by InterGlobe Aviation Ltd (INGL.NS), is also comparing the A320neo with the Boeing 737 MAX as it weighs a major new order for narrow-body jets, they added. The split between wide- and narrow-body jets was not immediately clear. An IndiGo representative told Reuters the airline is constantly in talks with manufacturers as it plans its next phase of growth. IndiGo, which counts a 55% share of the domestic market, is widely expected to maintain Airbus as its supplier of narrow-body jets to squeeze out further economies of scale. Industry publication CAPA reported last month that IndiGo was looking at around 500 jets as Air India closed its own deal.

☆ Shares of Aircraft Lessors Take Off in Tight Market for Planes
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Matt Grossman | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

American Airlines has leased about two-thirds of its 737-800 planes in recent years. It has been a good year to own airliners—or stocks and bonds from companies that do. Travelers around the world are dusting off their passports and buying tickets again, nudging global passenger counts closer to pre-Covid levels. But Airbus SE and Boeing Co. have struggled to shake off their own pandemic production doldrums, limiting the supply of new jets.

For airlines, sale-and-leasebacks have been a popular way to generate liquidity and ease balance sheets. They then aim to sell them at a profit to lessors at the expense of agreeing to pay a rent. "It's a cheap and often tax-efficient way for the airline to raise finance," said an aircraft finance source. "Lessors are already queuing up to do business with Air India. Some lessors say it is not worth it after new money poured into aviation looking for returns when interest rates were low.

☆ UK regional airline Flybe to wind down as rescue talks collapse
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Flybe to wind down business as rescue talks endFurther 25 jobs affectedFeb 15 (Reuters) - British regional airline Flybe will wind up its business after rescue talks fell through, its joint administrators said on Wednesday, a month after the company cancelled all flights and entered insolvency proceedings for a second time in three years. The pandemic and resulting lockdown pushed Flybe into administration for the first time in March 2020, affecting 2,400 jobs. After administrators were appointed again in late January 2023, Birmingham Headquartered Flybe made 276 workers redundant. Flybe, which operated flights on 21 routes to 17 destinations across the UK and Europe, said a further 25 jobs would now be affected. Lufthansa declined to comment on the matter on Wednesday, while Air France-KLM did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

☆ The World’s Biggest Planes Are Finding Their Way Back Into the Skies
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-05 | by ( Benjamin Katz | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Many airlines are flying their Airbus A380s again after mothballing the planes at the height of the pandemic. The world’s biggest passenger airliners—many of which had been earmarked for the scrapyard—are being brought back into service as carriers rush to restore long-haul air travel. Aircraft lessors said airlines are clamoring for their once-parked fleets of big jets, which typically each ferry hundreds of passengers on long-distance routes. The demand is limiting availability and pushing up the prices of rentals.

"Flybe has now ceased trading and all flights from and to the UK operated by Flybe have been cancelled and will not be rescheduled," it said. A spokesperson for administrators Interpath Advisory said about 75,000 Flybe customers had future bookings that would now not be honoured. Headquartered in Birmingham, Flybe operated flights on 21 routes to 17 destinations across the UK and Europe using a fleet of eight leased Q400 turboprop aircraft. A spokesperson for Interpath said 45 members of Flybe's 321-strong workforce had been retained for the time being. Louise Haigh, the opposition Labour Party's transport spokesperson, said Flybe's collapse was "devastating news" for staff and customers.

The lessors took a hit of almost $10 billion when Russia barred airlines from returning planes hit by Western sanctions to their owners in the West. This has turned the spotlight on other risky markets, most prominently China and Taiwan, where some fear future conflict could cause a similar seizure on a much larger scale. When discussing the Russia losses, most executives speaking at the conference, also touched on China risks. Several executives said the loss of aircraft to Russia would simply feed into risk management models and encourage lessors to be careful about spreading their exposure rather than withdrawing from markets altogether. "Lessors aren't going to be able to abandon higher risk areas because that is what they do," he added.

"Our industry is still climbing out of - call it a 100-year event, call it a macro shock of epic proportions. "We are bullish and these are the reasons why I suspect there's a disconnect between the Davos in Switzerland and the Davos in Dublin," Cronin told Reuters. "It's a good time to be a lessor," said Tony Diaz, chairman of the smaller Zephyrus Aviation Capital. It's probably easy to take that second one too," Robert Korn, president and co-founder of fast growing Carlyle Aviation Partners, added. Additional reporting by Tim Hepher and Joanna Plucinska Editing by Mark PotterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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