airBaltic has received initial approval from a US bankruptcy judge to continue its restructuring under Chapter 11, according to Reuters and a statement by Latvian prime minister Andris Kulbergs. The ruling allows the carrier to keep operating and initially access about €140 million from a €350 million debtor-in-possession financing package.

The airline, majority-owned by the Latvian state, voluntarily filed on 14 September in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. It said then that scheduled flights, ticket sales and customer services would continue and that existing tickets remain valid.

Law360 reported that on 15 September a New York judge granted interim permission to draw nearly $162 million — roughly the first €140 million tranche — from the DIP facility, overruling objections from some bondholders. Kulbergs wrote on 16 September that the court had accepted the filing, allowing immediate access to financing, the start of restructuring and a review of creditor obligations.

The €350 million facility was arranged by Strategic Value Partners, with Barclays, Hayfin Capital Management, Morgan Stanley and Oaktree Capital Management among the lenders, according to reporting on the case. Later draws remain subject to the agreed conditions and, where required, further court approvals.

airBaltic aims to complete the restructuring by June 2027. Reuters reports that it intends to return 20 aircraft considered surplus after earlier fleet-expansion plans became unsustainable. A business plan announced in August targets cutting the Airbus A220-300 fleet from 54 to 36 aircraft by the end of 2026.

Chapter 11 does not mean the company immediately stops flying: the US process allows operations to continue while debts are restructured under court supervision. Initial approval should not be confused with exiting the proceedings. For passengers, the airline’s current message remains that flights continue as normal.

Image: MarcelX42, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. Airbus A220-300 YL-ABL at Frankfurt, not a courtroom photograph. Cropped to 16:9.

Source consulted: US court accepts airBaltic Chapter 11 filing, Latvian prime minister says (Reuters, 16 September 2026); airBaltic initiates Chapter 11 financial reorganisation; flights continue as normal.