THE INDONESIAN Airline Ticketing Agencies Association (ASTINDO) has inquired about the refund procedure for its members’ deposits in Mandala Airlines after the airline resumes operations following fresh investment.
ASTINDO also raised questions about its members’ share in the company after the airline is revamped, with Indonesia’s Saratoga Group set to take a 51 per cent majority; Tiger Airways, 33 per cent; and Mandala’s creditors, including ASTINDO, 16 per cent.
ASTINDO’s head of ticketing division, Pauline Suharno, said: “ASTINDO members’ portion is considered part of the 16 per cent shares belonging to all 345 of Mandala’s creditors. What will our composition be like?”
She said ASTINDO had never approved the conversion of the airline’s debt into shares. “We want the airline to refund our members in cash rather than shares, especially when the share value is not clear.”
Suharno claimed that the agents’ deposits and claims totalled 42 billion rupiah (US$4.9 million), and that the entry of new investors would not benefit creditors.
“Saratoga has been given low prices to be able to acquire the majority of shares,” she explained. “The value is not equal to the price creditors have to pay to convert the airline’s debt into shares.”
