Airline News
Skymark files for bankruptcy
February 3rd 2015
Japan’s Skymark Airlines last week filed for protection from creditors, citing a weak yen and a dispute with Airbus Group over unpaid deposits for a $2.2 billion contract for six A380s that was revoked by Airbus in July amid Skymark’s growing financial concerns. Read More »
The Tokyo-based budget carrier said it had liabilities of 71.09 billion yen ($603.6 million) in its bankruptcy filing with the Tokyo District Court after an emergency board meeting that saw the resignation of chief executive officer Shinichi Nishikubo. Masakazu Arimori, a Skymark board member, will replace Nishikubo in the short-term Skymark’s shares will be delisted on March 1. Subject to regulatory approval, Tokyo-based private equity firm Integral Corp. has said it would provide financing to help the carrier restructure.
"The company, believing the demands for breach-of-contract payments were unreasonable, attempted to negotiate a reduction in the payments with Airbus but reached a situation in which there were concerns that payment for breach of contract would have worsened the company's financial base," Skymark said. In response, an Airbus spokesman in Japan told This Week in Asia-Pacific Aviation that it was aware of the bankruptcy protection filings and that it was “a matter for the courts now”.
