Sat, May 03, 2008
Seattle-Based Firm Agrees To Buy Operation
Aloha Airlines resumed cargo operations Thursday evening, after
the carrier reached an agreement with the US Bankruptcy Court to
keep the vital interisland freight-and-mail-transport service
going.
The Honolulu Advertiser reports a court-appointed trustee will
oversee operations until May 14, when the unit of the now-defunct
airline is sold to Seattle-based Saltchuk Resources Inc.
"They are waiting for me to push the button" to resume service,
Aloha CEO David Banmiller said Thursday.
As ANN reported, Aloha shut down its cargo
division Monday, after being denied additional financing by its
primary lender, GMAC Commercial Finance, after both Saltchuk and a
rival bidder, Jupiter Holdings Group, opted not to match GMAC's
asking price of $15 million for the profitable operation.
The shutdown sent local leaders scrambling... as Aloha carries
85 percent of Hawaiian interisland cargo, including mail. Saltchuk
said it decided to take a second look at its bid after US Senator
Daniel Inouye made a personal appeal to the company.
"We re-engaged in our efforts to acquire Aloha's Air Cargo
operation after Senator Inouye personally called us shortly after
the shutdown of operations earlier this week," said Saltchuk
President Tim Engle. "He was greatly concerned about the 300 jobs
and the vital service that Aloha Air Cargo has provided for the
people of Hawaii and asked we try once again to see if we could
make something happen."
There's no guarantee Saltchuk will keep those 300 jobs... but
the company has indicated it wants to hire existing Aloha employees
to keep the cargo service going.
Aloha filed for bankruptcy March 20. The carrier grounded its
passenger-carrying service March 31, after 61 years in
operation.
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