LIAT may return to Caribbean skies in mid4Q20

Caribbean regional airline, LIAT (Antigua and Barbuda) (Antigua), currently in administration, may return to operations as early as November 2020, according to Antigua’s Information Minister Melford Nicholas.

However, he did not commit to a firm date for its relaunch: “It’s likely to happen in the new month. I would not want to hazard a date,” he told the Antigua Observer. “There are still operational issues that I imagine they are going to be working on, but from the report that was shared with us by the Prime Minister (Gaston Browne), the conditions are going to be in place for LIAT to take to the skies in the new month.”

Owned by seven Caribbean governments, LIAT suspended its operations in March 2020 after many Caribbean islands shut down their airports as part of measures to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Facing increased debt and the economic impact from the pandemic, LIAT in July received a stay from liquidation when the government of Antigua and Barbuda secured an order for its administration. The airline owed creditors in excess of XCD100 million East Caribbean dollars (USD27 million).

Its restructuring plan requires a re-investment of XCD108 million (USD39.9 million), with the Antigua and Barbuda government prepared to underwrite up to 50% of the required recapitalisation. The remaining XCD54 million (USD19.9 million) is to be raised from the private and public sectors. As part of the process, the governments of Barbados and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines have agreed to sell their shares to Antigua. In August, Browne reported interest from other regional airlines and governments, as well as an unnamed entity from Africa. At the same time, the airline's administrator temporarily laid off about a quarter of its remaining 166 employees.

Since the airline grounded its flights, several other regional operators have moved to fill the market gap, including One Caribbean (St. Vincent Argyle International), interCaribbean Airways (JY, Providenciales), and Air Antilles (2016) (Pointe à Pitre), news reports said. LIAT forms part of the Caribsky Alliance, a strategic partnership with Winair (WM, St. Maarten) and Air Antilles.

Before going into administration, LIAT used to operate five ATR42-600s and five ATR72-600s on high-frequency inter-island scheduled services to 15 destinations in the Caribbean.