BRUSSELS – Embattled Belgian charter company Sobelair has received a lease price reduction for two Boeing 767 aircraft from German company DSF in an act of good faith.

The news could help save the ailing company, which must lodge a restructuring plan to a Brussels commercial court by Friday if it is to escape bankruptcy.

A decrease in the lease price for Sobelair’s two 767s was one of several survival measures proposed by the airline’s director, Aldo Vastapane.

The charter company had to find EUR 10 million to survive the winter without declaring bankruptcy – it was to ask for concessions from suppliers such as its caterers, ground handlers, and ask employees to take a pay cut.

Workers’ unions complained however that they had suffered a similar pay cut last year, with no visible effects and no overview on the company’s business plan.

[Copyright Expatica News 2003]

Subject: Belgian news