Sun Country Files for Bankruptcy

[BrazPilot]

SUN COUNTRY AIRLINES BANKRUPTCY FILING – October 6, 2008
Today, Petters Aviation, LLC and its subsidiaries, including MN Airlines, LLC, d.b.a. Sun Country Airlines filed for protection under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code.
The decision to file for bankruptcy was based upon the adverse effects from recent events at Petters Group Worldwide Inc. This move affords us protection while we reorganize the business to be successful.
Sun Country will continue to operate business as usual. We will continue to fly our normal schedule. We will continue to operate under the same guidelines with regards to ticketing, refunds, changes and all other transactions.
We want to be clear that Sun Country customers have nothing to worry about if they have purchased a ticket on the airline. We are meeting our financial obligations and have every confidence we will continue to fly. Our credit card bank retains the funds until the passengers fly and would refund those funds if for some reason any flights were cancelled.
The management and employees feel very confident about the future of our great airline.

http://www.suncountry.com/programs/announcements.shtml

 

[HalinTexas]

Come on in!

The water's great, but bring beer, we're running out.

 

[Cardinal]

Sorry to hear that guys. Welcome to our rollercoaster.

 

[JonnyKnoxville]

Sun Country files for bankruptcy
Tuesday October 7, 2008
Sun Country Airlines yesterday filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, but insisted it will "operate business as usual."

The Minneapolis/St. Paul-based carrier has been on shaky ground since its parent company, Petters Group Worldwide, became ensnared in a US federal criminal investigation last week related to an alleged fraud scheme. Recently resigned PGW Chairman Tom Petters, who was arrested Friday, relinquished his role as SCA chairman. President and CEO Stan Gadek became chairman and said the airline, which has not been implicated in the federal probe, needed to secure its financial independence (ATWOnline, Oct. 6).

Gadek said yesterday that the bankruptcy filing was forced on SCA as "a result of recent events at Petters Group Worldwide," adding, "We do not anticipate any disruptions and expect to operate business as usual. Customers can book their flights in confidence."

In a statement issued prior to the bankruptcy filing, the carrier said that a letter sent to workers last week warning of a possible shutdown by Dec. 1 was merely a precaution and ensures that SCA complies with federal law regarding notification of possible layoffs within 60 days. "We are meeting our financial obligations and have every confidence we will continue to fly," SCA said in the statement. "We have been very open about the financial challenges we face since the situation with our parent company developed last week. However, over the past week we have made progress in negotiating with vendors and identifying additional sources of revenue. We have taken the very difficult step of instituting a pay deferral but have received employee support during this challenging time."

SCA operates a fleet of nine 737-800s on scheduled services and charters to points in the US, Mexico and the Caribbean.

by Aaron Karp

 

[kingairyahoo]

Owner of Low-Cost Carrier Jailed for Fraud

by Josh Lew Oct 6th 2008 @ 11:30AM
Businessman Tom Petters was arrested in Minnesota on Friday as part of a federal fraud investigation. He is the head of an investment group that owns Sun Country Airlines, along with stakes in several other businesses. He was charged with wire and mail fraud, money laundering and obstruction of justice. Investigators allege that he masterminded a plan to bilk other investors out of at least one billion dollars.

A federal judge in Minneapolis order Petters to be held without bail after a taped phone conversation revealed that the disgraced entrepreneur planned to leave the country. A hearing is scheduled for Tuesday. Petters has stated that he plans to fight to be released from custody and maintains his innocence.

What does this mean for Sun Country? The struggling budget carrier has always operated on a shoestring. Petters has agreed to step down from his decision-making position so that the airline will not be harmed by the scandal. However, the scandal comes on the heels of the announcement that Sun Country is struggling and will be "temporarily" cutting staff's salaries by 50%.

 

[Jetjockey]

What???? A criminal running an airline? This HAS to be a first!!!

 

[CaptSeth]

Come on in!

The water's great, but bring beer, we're running out.

That's the funniest thing I've seen you post, ever. And I've had lots of time to read posts over the past seven months.

 

[metroplex]

would be great if the look at more CEOs, like T.H.

 

[HalinTexas]

That's the funniest thing I've seen you post, ever. And I've had lots of time to read posts over the past seven months.

Come on, Seth. You've known me for a while, I'm not always b!tching about something.

It's all so ridiculous, you have to laugh.