High Court signs off on Virgin Atlantic £1.2bn private rescue

High Court signs off on Virgin Atlantic £1.2bn rescue: Deal involves only private funds including £200m from Branson’s Virgin Group

Virgin Atlantic’s £1.2billion rescue has been signed off by a High Court judge.

Last week, the airline’s creditors voted to approve the deal, which the firm said was a ‘significant milestone in safeguarding its future’.

At a remote court hearing on Wednesday, Mr Justice Snowden sanctioned the restructuring plan – a key step of the process for Virgin Atlantic to implement the rescue package.

Cleared: Last week, Virgin Atlantic’s creditors voted to approve the deal, which the airline said was a ‘significant milestone in safeguarding its future’

The judge said this will allow the airline to make the plan effective by Friday.

The £1.2billion rescue deal, announced in July, involves only private funds, and includes a cash injection of £200million from founder Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Group. 

David Allison QC, for Virgin Atlantic, told the court that four creditor meetings were held last week, with 100 per cent attendance and 100 per cent approval at three of them. 

The fourth saw the deal approved by the vast majority of those present and voting.

Allison said it was ‘in the best interests of all stakeholders’ to reach an agreement. A US procedural hearing will follow today.

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