Air Namibia debt threatens national rail company
Having failed in their attempt to recoup EUR9.9 million euros (USD12 million) from Air Namibia (SW, Windhoek Int’l) before it was liquidated, creditors of defunct Belgian carrier Challengair (1I, Brussels National) are now going after its former parent, Namibian rail company TransNamib Holdings.
Challengair’s liquidator Anicet Baum, via his Namibian lawyer Sisa Namandje, has issued a letter of demand to TransNamib for the same amount, failing which he will apply for the railway parastatal’s liquidation in the Namibian High Court, reports The Namibian newspaper.
The debt harks back to a settlement over outstanding lease payments of a B767-300(ER) in 1998. Air Namibia at the time was a subsidiary of TransNamib. On April 1, 1999, that subsidiary was transferred to the then newly established company Air Namibia Pty (Ltd).
“This letter accordingly serves as a demand […] of payment of the total outstanding amount currently standing at the amount of EUR 9,863,053.04 (USD 677,997.82) within 15 days of receipt of this letter of demand, failing which you shall be deemed to be unable to pay your debts in accordance with the above section of the Companies Act, and we will proceed with an application in the High Court for an order seeking TransNamib’s liquidation,” Namandje wrote.
A spokesperson for TransNamib confirmed the company had received the letter of demand. “TransNamib would like to reiterate its stance that it was not party to the settlement agreement entered into between Air Namibia and Challengair in 2019, in respect of the arbitration award. In the meantime, TransNamib is consulting its legal representatives on the appropriate action to defend this letter of demand,” the company said in a statement shared with ch-aviation.
As reported, on February 26, 2021, the Namibian Airports Company (NAC) filed for the provisional liquidation of Air Namibia to prevent the estate of Challengair from attaching the airline’s assets and thereby leaving NAC and other creditors empty-handed.
The Challengair estate applied for Air Namibia’s liquidation in October 2020 after the airline had been unable to repay accumulated debt incurred for the lease of the aircraft.
The matter was settled out of court on January 29, 2021. According to the settlement plan, Air Namibia agreed to pay the estate of Challengair EUR9.9 million, EUR5 million (USD6 million) of which were due before February 19, 2021, to be followed by monthly payments of EUR677,175.50 (USD819,914.61) until January 2022. Financial pressure resulting from this settlement was one of the deciding factors that resulted in the Namibian government’s decision to liquidate the airline voluntarily a month later.