Avianca has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the USA and will shutter its Avianca Peru subsidiary as the shutdown of air travel amid the coronavirus pandemic obliterates revenues. "We believe that a reorganisation under Chapter 11 is the best path forward to protect the essential air travel and air transport services that we provide across Colombia and other markets throughout Latin America," says Avianca chief executive Anko van der Werff in a 10 May statement. The health crisis has hit the airline sector hard as governments implemented social-distancing orders which reduced demand for air travel or forbid it altogether, as in Colombia. "Avianca is facing the most challenging crisis in our 100-year history as we navigate the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic," says van der Werff. "Despite the positive results yielded by our 'Avianca 2021' plan, we believe that, in the face of a complete grounding of our passenger fleet and a recovery that will be gradual, entering into this process is a necessary step to address our financial challenges." The Colombian carrier had recently concluded an out-of-court restructuring in which it reprofiled its debts and rationalised its network. The company, which is being advised by Seabury and FTI Consulting, has entered into bankruptcy protection without a debtor-in-possession loan. "Avianca continues to be engaged in discussions with the government of Colombia, as well as those of its other key markets, regarding financing structures that would provide additional liquidity through the Chapter 11 process and play a vital role in ensuring that the company emerges from its court-supervised reorganisation as a highly competitive and successful carrier in the Americas," the airline adds in the statement. As of 25 March, Avianca ceased all commercial flights and grounded its fleet following travel restriction orders by Colombia and other countries in which it operates. Of the total number of countries in which Avianca operates, 88% have total or partial passenger air transport restrictions, which the airline says has "forced [it to] take a series of extraordinary and structural measures". These have included employee furloughs, temporary wage reductions, reductions in non-essential capital expenditures and temporary deferred payments on long-term leases. The carrier continues to operate cargo flights, which represented less than 10% of its normal revenues. "Avianca has limited visibility as to when current travel restrictions will be lifted and, once such restrictions are lifted, it does not expect revenues to return to pre-pandemic levels in the short term as the effects on travel are expected to be long-lasting," the airline says in the statement. "These factors, coupled with Avianca's substantial financial obligations, made it necessary for Avianca to explore alternatives to reorganize its operations and restructure its debt." As carriers around the world turn to their governments for state support to weather the crisis, Avianca, too, had requested state aid in the form of debt rather than a grant. "These could be done in the form of convertible bonds or government endorsed loans," van der Werf said in an April video on the airline's YouTube channel. "Colombia needs its airlines because this country lacks a system of fast interurban trains and often even adequate roads. This country cannot risk losing its airlines," he argued. On 3 April, Fitch Ratings downgraded Avianca from "CCC-" to "C". Prior to the pandemic, the agency had upgraded the carrier's rating to "CCC+" from its previously distressed rating of "RD" after the company had completed its out-of-court restructuring programme "Avianca 2021" to reprofile debt. After several management changes in 2019, Avianca in January obtained a $250 million secured loan from stakeholders United Airlines and Kingsland International and completed a $484 million bond exchange, which allowed the Colombian airline to push its 2020 debt repayment to 2023. The carrier also raised an additional $125 million in convertible secured financing commitments from investment firm Citadel and private Latin American investors. In addition to reprofiling its debt, the company has cut costs by rationalising its route network: it has announced the removal of its Embraer 190 fleet from service and is eliminating unprofitable routes, mainly in Peru and in selected regional markets in Colombia, while focusing on its points of network strengths. "In terms of business profile, the company has a good asset base and is relatively well positioned to its regional peers based on its network, route diversification and important regional market position," Fitch had written in the December report. "Nevertheless, these factors are tempered by the company's higher gross adjusted leverage and refinancing risks, weaker liquidity and financial flexibility relative to peers." At 31 December, Avianca had $398 million in cash and $872 million of short-term obligations, $237 million of which is related to lease agreements.
Source: Cirium