More dark days are ahead for the Australian low-cost carrier.
A Bonza 737 MAX aircraft (Photo: Shutterstock)
It is looking increasingly likely that Australia’s budget airline, Bonza, will be shut down. The collapsed airline’s administrators have terminated all employee contracts and canceled future flights, according to 9 News Australia.
This is because no potential buyers have submitted binding offers to buy the airline.
It is almost probable that Bonza will be shut down for good after no interested parties submitted bids to buy the collapsed airline.
The airline’s administrators assisted a number of interested parties through the sale process, allowing them to conduct due diligence and formulate offers.
However, none of the parties that showed an interest in buying the budget airline submitted an offer by the deadline of last Friday. The administrator, Hall Chadwick, did not receive any binding offers.
More than 300 of Bonza’s employees were informed by the administrators that their employment had been terminated. Speaking after the news of Bonza’s staff retrenchments, Australia’s Transport Workers’ Union (TWU) said it was a bleak day for the country’s aviation industry.
“This is incredibly difficult news for Bonza employees who have received no pay for more than two months after the airline’s sudden collapse,” TWU National Secretary Michael Kaine said.
All of the airline’s future flights have also been officially canceled. Customers must be given clarity on the airline’s situation and the way forward regarding the operation of future flights.
The low-cost carrier went into administration on April 30 – after its aircraft were seized two weeks after Bonza was issued with default notices from AIP Capital, the company that owns its aircraft.
A creditors’ meeting will now be called, where the future of the company will be decided.
It is not yet known when the creditors’ meeting will take place. Hall Chadwick said that there was still a chance buyers might submit a proposal to buy the airline in this period.
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