Silver Airways announced in an open letter to customers earlier today that it has filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection in the Southern District of Florida.
According to the airline, the filing will allow it to secure additional capital and undergo a financial restructuring that will strengthen its position as a competitive airline. The airline expects that the process will be completed in the first quarter of 2025, which seems rather fast to me considering that is less than 100 days away, and will have no impact on passengers. From the letter, the airline calls out the following:
- All tickets remain valid, and the airline will continue operating as usual;
- You can book flights with Silver through its website or any other channel;
- United and JetBlue customers, including loyalty program members, will experience no disruptions to their bookings or services;
- Tickets purchased through any other airline or agency will be honored.
This is the second Chapter 11 Bankruptcy filing in as many months for a U.S. based carrier following Spirit’s announcement in November.
For those not familiar with the airline, Silver Airways is a regional U.S. airline operating flights between gateways in Florida, the Southeast and The Bahamas. Its fleet is comprised of turboprop aircraft including the ATR-42 and ATR-72. The airline also owns Seaborne Airlines, a San Juan, Puerto Rico-based air carrier serving destinations throughout Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and other countries in the Caribbean.
Summary
Silver Airways has filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection in the Southern District of Florida. The announcement states that the airline expects to have the bankruptcy process completed in the first quarter of 2025. While this seems fast, the most important information is that the carrier is expected to continue operations as normal.
I enjoyed my flight on them three weeks ago. With just 6 people on the plane it was quite roomy.
With loads like that this bankruptcy announcement is shocking!
EYW-TPA several weeks ago was full. I knew their loads were less than full, but this route seems profitable.
Appreciate the data point. Curious as to whether you flew around the holidays or during a not so busy time. It’s likely they had routes that performed well, but not enough to run a profitable operation.
They are an essential air service so no matter how full the plane is they get paid
They are not. They do not hold any Essential Air Service awards nor serve any cities part of the EAS program. They were in the last but it has been several years and was before they retired the Saab 340 aircraft and bought the ATRs they currently fly.