Eduardo León Sandoval, judge of the Tenth District Court in Civil Matters in Mexico City, issued an agreement to lift the embargo on Aeromar’s accounts and trademarks, which had been in place since 18 July 2019 due to the company’s debt to Mexico City International Airport (known as AICM).
Days earlier, the national government headed by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador had spoken out against the company’s proposal to carry out a 40 million dollars bailout. In principle, the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit will not provide the money needed for National Defence to take control of Aeromar, despite the government’s intention to create a state-run airline. The move put the company in a complicated situation that could lead to bankruptcy.
According to Forbes Mexico, the judge asked the National Banking and Securities Commission (CNBV) to lift the embargo on five bank accounts in Aeromar’s name. He also asked the General Directorate of the Public Transport Registry of the Mexico City Ministry of Mobility and the General Directorate of Civil Aeronautics to lift any seizure on the company’s assets.
Almost three and a half years ago, the legal representatives of the main airport serving the country’s capital filed a lawsuit to recover the money owed by the airline for the use of the facilities.
According to a report published in the newspaper El Financiero, the company owes the Tax Administration Service (SAT) around 130 million Mexican pesos. In addition, it owes 50 million pesos to Aeropuertos y Servicios Auxiliares, and another 40 million to Navegación en el Espacio Aéreo Mexicano.
The company also owes debts to social security services and savings funds of its workers affiliated to the Airline Pilots Union Association (ASPA), which has already warned of a possible strike.
The impact that Aeromar’s bankruptcy would have on the Mexican airline market
Should Aeromar fail to overcome its financial crisis and cease operations, Mexico would lose around 250 flights and more than 16.000 seats per week.
Aeromar currently has ten aircraft in operation, all of them ATR 42-600 and 72-600 models. The company is a traditional user of the aircraft developed by the French-Italian manufacturer. With these regional turboprops, which are among the most popular models on the market in this segment, it serves a route network consisting mainly of domestic services.
