Air Antilles in Crisis, Yet Optimistic About Finding a Buyer
The Caire Group (Compagnie Aérienne Interrégionale Express), owner of Air Guyane Express and Air Antilles Express, has been subjected to forced liquidation with a continuation of activity for two months by the Commercial Court of Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe.
This comes after more than three weeks of strike action by pilots demanding salary improvements that were agreed upon last December, but which, they claim, the company has failed to fulfill.
In addition, employees questioned the lack of dialogue with the company’s managing director, who responded to their complaints by arguing that the crisis faced by the Caire Group is partly due to the payment of debt incurred to the state for financial aid during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rudy Ouakrat, the pilot union’s lawyer, expressed his satisfaction with the court’s decision to the AFP news agency, and hopes this measure will facilitate the search for a buyer who can properly manage the airlines in the future. The lawyer also emphasized the need for the group’s managing director, Eric Koury, to step down to advance this process. Workers resumed their tasks this Thursday.
Air Guyane Express and Air Antilles Express employ around 300 staff members and play a significant role in the inter-island air connectivity of the Caribbean. Both airlines operate under the Air Antilles brand and possess a fleet composed of 8 aircraft: 4 ATR 72, 2 ATR 42, and 2 De Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter.
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