Advertiser & Editorial Disclosure: The Bulkhead Seat earns an affiliate commission for anyone approved through the links below. This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. We work to provide the best publicly available offers to our readers. We frequently update them, but this site does not include all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities.
The trustee overseeing the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing of Silver Airways (and its affiliate Seaborne Virgin Islands) has filed a motion to dismiss the cases because she believes that the airlines have little chance of success. The airlines suffered net losses of $467,000 in February and $1,221,000 in the first 2 weeks of this March. Ouch!
Silver Airways has been trying to chart its path forward, but has struggled quite a bit over the past several years. In December, the airline filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Since then it has fought to maintain its schedule with many flights seeing significant delays or cancellations. Additionally, it has feuded with airports like Anguilla’s Clayton J. Lloyd International Airport (AXA) over more than $103,000 in unpaid fees and ceased service there. In March, it cancelled all flights at Orlando International Airport (MCO) and left passengers stranded. Finally, it was reported that Silver Airways furloughed around 20% of its pilots last month.
Aero Crew News reported that Silver Airways issued notices as it tried to save cash. Silver Airways operating reports reflect total losses of $32,037,908 since the petition date. Being that they have pulled routes, had to divest aircraft, and with bills that appear insurmountable, it seems like the airline will be forced to cease operations at some point.
The St. Thomas Source reports that US Trustee Mary Ida Townson filed the motion to dismiss the bankruptcy cases this past Thursday in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida in Fort Lauderdale. She cited “fanciful projections that fail to take reality into consideration.” Silver Airways is paying out more money than it is generating and that is not long-term sustainable. In addition to the losses noted above, Silver expected to see around $1,243,000 in net losses in the second half of March.
Unfortunately, these financial struggles are nothing new for Silver Airways. In April 2023, I wrote about how Silver Airways had not paid its rent at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) since 2021. Silver Airways allegedly owed $957,750.17 after its $113,634 security deposit was deducted. Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) is Silver Airways’ biggest hub. The airline is owned by a private equity firm (Versa Capital Management), so its finances are not public. This was apparently not resolved and other debts weighed down the regional carrier further, which led to the bankruptcy filing. Since then, the carrier has also had to return nearly one third of its fleet to lessors.
Chapter 7 liquidation seems like it will be Silver Airways’ only option. A May 7th hearing might spell the end for the beleaguered carrier if it doesn’t cease operations before then.
Anthony’s Take: Silver Airways has been plagued with issues for quite some time. I have had great experiences and some really bad ones (flights excessively delayed to the point that I drove or cancelled) with the airline and hope they can get it together, but it’s not looking good.
(Image Credit: Silver Airways.)
User Generated Content Disclosure: The Bulkhead Seat encourages constructive discussions, comments, and questions. Responses are not provided by or commissioned by any bank advertisers. These responses have not been reviewed, approved, or endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the responsibility of the bank advertiser to respond to comments.
Advertiser & Editorial Disclosure: The Bulkhead Seat earns an affiliate commission for anyone approved through the links above This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. We work to provide the best publicly available offers to our readers. We frequently update them, but this site does not include all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities.
