The court approved the rehabilitation plan of the small airline Hi Air, which is undergoing corporate rehabilitation procedures.
The Seoul Rehabilitation Court Rehabilitation Division 17 (Chief Judge Yang Min-ho) held a meeting of stakeholders on the 20th to deliberate and pass the rehabilitation plan for Hi Air, and announced the approval decision on the 21st.
Hi Air, established in December 2017, is the only small airline in the country operating five domestic routes and one international route. It began commercial operations in January 2020 but faced operational difficulties due to restrictions on domestic and international travel due to the COVID-19 pandemic, increased operational costs from additional aircraft introduction, and failure to attract further investment. Ultimately, it suspended aircraft operations in September 2023 and applied for rehabilitation procedures to the Seoul Rehabilitation Court.
Hi Air received court approval to designate Samil Accounting Corporation as the sales bookrunner and pushed for pre-approval mergers and acquisitions (M&A). In April this year, it selected Sangsangin Investment & Securities Consortium as the preferred negotiator. The Sangsangin Investment & Securities Consortium is a group formed with Sangsangin Investment & Securities participating as a financial investor (FI) and consisting of strategic investors (SI). The consortium representative signed an M&A investment contract for 16.9 billion won.
A court official noted, "With the approval of the Hi Air rehabilitation plan, we hope to improve its financial structure and establish a new management system to position itself as a sustainable air transportation corporation."