Following the resumption of scheduled flight operations on September 1, Comair reached another milestone in the business rescue process with capital inflows of R270-million.
Flights were resumed at the start of this month after a temporary suspension as a result of Level 3 Covid-19 travel restrictions.
The capital inflows follow the sale of Comair’s SLOW Lounge business to FirstRand Bank for R250-million and the receipt of a R20-million payment from South African Airways (SAA).
The SLOW Lounge transaction will require an amendment to the business rescue plan, a notice of which has been dispatched to affected persons.
The R20-million distribution from SAA’s business rescue practitioners is part of the R1.1-billion the State-owned enterprise owed Comair in settlement of a damages award for past anticompetitive behaviour.
SAA paid an initial amount of R289-million in February 2019, with the balance payable in instalments until July 2022.
These payments ceased when SAA entered business rescue in December 2019.
Richard Ferguson, one of Comair’s business rescue practitioners, says the capital injection is a significant step towards the successful conclusion of the business rescue process.
“There is still work to be done but these capital inflows, the fact that Comair is back in the skies and again earning revenue, coupled with the commitment by the investors to support the viability and sustainability of the business, all point to a positive outcome.”