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Be careful if you have travel plans on Air Baltic, the dominant carrier in Latvia and Lithuania.
Air Baltic seems to be in trouble. They have been cancelling loads of flights lately, including some that were sold out. The company apparently has substantial debts including to the Riga airport, and there is a huge fight underway between the Latvian government that owns a bit over a majority of the stock and a private investor which owns the remainder and is managing the airline. The investor is demanding the government kick in more money, and many suspect the rampant flight cancellations are an attempt to force them to provide it. My employers travel office responded by no longer booking on Air Baltic until things get back to normal, if they ever do.
The substantial government ownership in Air Baltic probably precludes something like Lithuanian Airlines sudden collapse a year or two ago. In that case, the privatized owners stripped the airline of assets, transferring its aircraft to a new corporation, ran up debts, and then bankrupted the carcass. But then again, who knows?
Air Baltic seems to be in trouble. They have been cancelling loads of flights lately, including some that were sold out. The company apparently has substantial debts including to the Riga airport, and there is a huge fight underway between the Latvian government that owns a bit over a majority of the stock and a private investor which owns the remainder and is managing the airline. The investor is demanding the government kick in more money, and many suspect the rampant flight cancellations are an attempt to force them to provide it. My employers travel office responded by no longer booking on Air Baltic until things get back to normal, if they ever do.
The substantial government ownership in Air Baltic probably precludes something like Lithuanian Airlines sudden collapse a year or two ago. In that case, the privatized owners stripped the airline of assets, transferring its aircraft to a new corporation, ran up debts, and then bankrupted the carcass. But then again, who knows?