airBaltic seeks Chapter 11 protection in US court

airBaltic has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States, a court-supervised restructuring meant to cut the Latvian carrier's debt while it keeps flying.

Air Baltic Corporation and some of its subsidiaries filed voluntarily at the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York on September 14, 2026. According to the airline, scheduled services, ticket sales, reservations and customer service continue as normal during the case, and existing tickets, vouchers and credits stay valid.

airBaltic said it has lined up €350 million, about $405 million, in debtor-in-possession financing from a group that includes Strategic Value Partners, Barclays, Hayfin Capital Management, Morgan Stanley and Oaktree Capital Management. The money needs court approval and is meant to keep liquidity in place while the airline negotiates with creditors, aircraft lessors and other stakeholders. The carrier put the interest rate at SOFR plus 8%, roughly 12% at present levels, and expects the process to finish around June 2027.

Chapter 11 lets a company keep trading while it restructures debts and contracts under judicial oversight, with protection from certain creditor claims. Erno Hildén, the airline's president and chief executive, said the aim is to run the carrier while putting its new business plan into effect. Passengers should see little sign of the proceedings, he said, with aircraft continuing to fly, tickets on sale and future schedules being planned.

The filing comes after months of tightening liquidity at airBaltic. On September 3, the airline announced an agreement for €257 million in interim financing.