UPDATE2: Official: Russian govt has no final decision on VIM-Avia

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MOSCOW, Oct 6 (PRIME) -- Russia’s government has not made a final decision on the future of troubled airline VIM-Avia yet, Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich told reporters on Friday.

VIM-Avia had delayed a large number of flights from mid-summer to September 25, when it said it had no money to continue operations and had to stop charter flights. The government and Aeroflot pledged financial support to VIM-Avia. The accounts payable by VIM-Avia amount to about 10 billion rubles, of which 7 billion ruble debt is to banks, leasers and service providers.

Dvorkovich said that VIM-Avia’s flights cannot be stopped before it fulfils obligations to ship participants of the XIX World Youth and Students Festival in Sochi, which will take place from October 14 through October 22.

Dvorkovich said earlier that three domestic companies are interested in acquiring the troubled airline.

The Association of Tour Operators of Russia said that the crisis point to settle the situation has passed and that a total of 24,000 clients of VIM-Avia were shipped from September 28 to Thursday using capacities of the airline and tour operators. As of Thursday, 7,300 tourists are still abroad and will be carried back in accordance with their tour terms by other airlines.

Nine Russian tour operators have suffered from the stop of VIM-Avia’s charter flights, the association said. The aggregate portfolio of deposits held by the airline amounts to 700 million rubles.

The Federal Service for Labor and Employment has uncovered that VIM-Avia owes 262 million rubles to 1,338 employees and said that the arrears will be repaid.

Sergei Izvolsky, aide to the head of the Federal Air Transport Agency, said that VIM-Avia’s planes were arrested in Saudi Arabia and Malaysia on request of leasing companies, and 24 and 16 crew are stranded in the countries, respectively.

The official also said that national flagship carrier Aeroflot plans to pay for the people’s stay, and later deliver them to the airports of Dubai and Singapore and back home as soon as possible.

(57.5811 rubles – U.S. $1)

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