BRA - Braathens Regional Airlines (Stockholm Bromma) has applied for corporate restructuring in Sweden under a process it says is similar to the Chapter 11 procedure in the United States, for seven of the thirteen companies in the group. It is also “considering broadening its ownership.”
The company pledged in a statement on October 19 that air operations would continue as planned and that its passengers would not be affected. It claims to have been “heavily negatively affected” by exchange rates due to the weak Swedish krona as well as delays in deliveries due to global capacity shortages of aircraft and spare parts, resulting in large one-off costs.
“Right now a number of unfortunate factors have put us in a difficult situation,” said the carrier’s chairman and owner, Per G Braathen. “The decision to apply for reorganisation is necessary in order to take responsibility for jobs, the aviation infrastructure in Sweden, and the business in the long term.”
The airline currently operates a fleet of fourteen ATR72-600s, leased through AOC holder BRA - Braathens Regional Airways (TF, Trollhättan), with one more due for delivery, the ch-aviation fleets module shows. A second AOC was obtained early this year by start-up Braathens International Airways (TT, Stockholm Bromma), which operates four A319-100s and wet-leases in one A320-200 from GetJet Airlines (GW, Vilnius). It also took delivery of its own first A320 three weeks ago.
The launch of Braathens International Airways coincided with a new business area, charter flights for tour operators, “which has doubled the operations in a short period of time,” the statement admitted.
BRA said that “the airline industry is characterised by high fixed costs and small margins” but that it “must now act to ensure long-term financial stability.” The goal of the legal process alongside some of its own “improvement measures” is to restructure its debts and renegotiate agreements. The company has about 500 employees.
Braathens Regional Airlines has a history going back to 1946. Early in the pandemic, on April 6, 2020, it filed for bankruptcy protection in a Swedish district court after suspending all flight operations. On that occasion, creditors accepted a restructuring plan and heavy debt cuts, and the carrier emerged from the process with a relaunch in October 2020.
“Today’s situation is completely different from the one that prevailed during the pandemic when travel, more or less, was non-existent,” the airline said. On this current occasion, “the owners are willing to inject new capital in connection with a successful reorganisation process and are considering broadening the ownership.”
