Bonza's aircraft leave the country after embattled airline's fleet repossessed

Bonza's fleet has begun leaving the country after the aircraft were repossessed by the lessor.

The first 737-Max 8 aircraft, "Bruce", took off from the Sunshine Coast Airport on Thursday morning, bound for a refuelling stop in Honolulu and on to an unknown overseas destination.

For the past week, the aircraft have been sitting on the tarmac blocked by physical barriers, including a large tractor and a concrete slab, as the airport attempted to "secure the aircraft" as the administration process unfolded.

The embattled airline entered voluntary administration and "temporarily suspended" services after AIP Capital terminated the aircraft leases at 11:51pm on April 29.

External administrators Hall Chadwick confirmed the move was preceded by default notices nearly two weeks prior but said the action was "not foreshadowed or expected".

More than 300 staff were stood down without pay and told they would not receive wages owed to them for the month of April.

No legal intervention possible

In a statement released on Wednesday, Hall Chadwick confirmed it had attempted to negotiate with AIP Capital to keep the aircraft in the short term. 

 

"The administrators have regretfully been advised that the lessors will continue to enforce their rights under the termination notices and, subject to their own requirements and arrangements, seek to reposition the fleet elsewhere," the statement said.

In an email to staff, Bonza CEO Tim Jordan said no legal intervention to keep the aircraft had been deemed possible and the planes would be leaving their Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast, and Melbourne bases.

"The administrators are very focused on doing all possible to get us back into the Australian skies, and there are several ways this can progress forward," the email read.

Hall Chadwick told staff that discussions with potential buyers were still ongoing.

Thousands to join meeting

Four Bonza employees have been appointed to speak alongside union representatives and administrators at the first creditor's meeting on Friday morning.

In a Federal Court hearing in Sydney on Thursday morning, lawyers for Hall Chadwick put forward the intention to allow creditors to ask questions via the chat function, which would be answered at a later stage.

The news of the repossession came as a lawyer for the administrators revealed that approximately 10,000 emails had been received by administrators from Bonza staff and customers.

James Hutton SC told Justice Elizabeth Cheeseman that up to 8,846 participants made the cut-off to vote at the first creditors' meeting on Friday, May 10, via Zoom.

"The upshot is that a significantly lower number of creditors will be admitted as creditors and thus be entitled to vote at the meeting of creditors," Mr Hutton said.

Earlier in the week the court had heard that approximately 60,000 creditors may want to attend the meeting.

But Justice Cheeseman clarified that all creditors would be able raise any claims after Friday's meeting, to which Mr Hutton agreed.

Also discussed at the hearing, was the intention to appoint a small group of creditors to represent all of the creditors' views and to advise the administrator.

The Committee of Inspection would have the power to approve and request on behalf of the group.

To date, there have been 24 creditors that have been nominated to be in that group.

"If it is apparent that creditors are directing special proxies towards particular persons, those persons will be approached and asked if they want to be on the committee," Mr Hutton said.

"I am satisfied that the administrators are doing their best to come to both a practical and fair solution and the proposed orders have addressed the Committee of Inspection," Justice Cheeseman said.

"But … the evidence tells me that there cannot be a vote of any kind for compelling practical reasons at the meeting on Friday," she said.

Justice Cheeseman retired to assess the most appropriate way creditors' questions during the meeting could be received via the Zoom chat, and whether they could be answered at the time of the meeting or dealt with following the meeting.