Avianca out of bankruptcy

The company reported Wednesday that Colombian airline Avianca has successfully completed a financial restructuring and has emerged from bankruptcy “with significant debt reduction and over $1 billion in liquidity”.

“This is an important day for Avianca and all our stakeholders. We are pleased to have successfully exited this operation, with a company in a stronger financial position that will continue to serve all of its customers and fly for many years to come,” the company’s Chief Financial Officer, Rohit Philip, was quoted as saying in a statement to the airline.

Avianca filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in May 2020 to get out of a crisis exacerbated by the covid-19 pandemic, and last July it secured $1.6 billion in financial commitments to fund its reorganization.

Avianca noted that it has renewed its business model to be more efficient and for this reason is now presenting a proposal that combines the attributes of the low-cost airline model, as well as “preserving the main differences that allow it to be the most convenient travel alternative for millions of travelers and travelers in Latin America and the world”.

“We look forward to continuing to implement our new business vision and taking advantage of the recovery in travel demand to drive our future success,” said Philip.

Avianca’s president, Adrián Neuhauser, said he expected a successful future for the company and thanked “customers, partners and financiers throughout the process” for their support.