SmartLynx Airlines has ceased operations with immediate effect, the company announced today (November 24).
“As of today, we will be ceasing our commercial operations,” the company said. “This decision comes after a thorough assessment of our situation and long-term outlook, and it was not taken lightly.”
SmartLynx Latvia was sold by Avia Solutions Group (ASG) to Stichting Break Point Distressed Assets Management, a newly formed entity based in the Netherlands, the company said on October 22. The company then filed for restructuring on October 28.
The Latvian ACMI provider was originally set to submit a restructuring plan to Riga District Court by the end of February next year.
“We started as a small Latvian airline with big dreams, and over 33 years grew into an international family known for resilience, adaptability, and a spirit that never backed down,” said SmartLynx Airlines.
“SmartLynx has always been built by its people – passionate professionals from all corners of the world who took on every challenge with determination.”
ASG said it plans to merge SmartLynx Estonia and SmartLynx Malta into a rebranded company, as well as to “explore further efficiency enhancements” within its European AOC network.
The group owns AOCs in the UK, Turkey, Malta, Slovakia, Estonia, and Lithuania. The ACMI-group said it was looking to consolidate its European AOCs into three brands.
“The group estimates that an optimal fleet size for one AOC is around 27-30 aircraft,” ASG said at the time.
Nigeria's Air Peace told local media last week that SmartLynx's restructuring and abrupt disruption had cost it $15 million in losses.
The Nigerian airline's chief commercial officer Nowel Ngala said in a press briefing that SmartLynx had abruptly pulled four A320-200s that Air Peace had been leasing.
Reports indicate that said Ngala made scathing comments towards SmartyLynx, claiming these actions violated industry standards and contractual agreements.
Air Peace reportedly had 13 aircraft undergoing maintenance at the time, and it had wet-leased the four aircraft to provide some operational stability during its peak period. With the aircraft pulled suddenly and unexpectedly, the airline suffered significant disruptions.
Ngala said that SmartLynx had collected over $5 million from Air Peace, including just over $1million in security deposits. He reportedly alleged that SmartLynx had collected these payments despite knowing it intended to repossess the four aircraft.