The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York has approved Hawker Beechcraft’s request for an additional 120 days before it must file a formal plan to emerge from bankruptcy. The debt-laden Wichita, KS-based plane maker filed for Chapter 11 protection in May and originally hoped to emerge from bankruptcy before the end of the year.
The company indicated it needed more time to fully explore its options, including a possible sale of Hawker’s commercial aircraft division to the Chinese aerospace firm, Superior Air Beijing. While Hawker is currently in exclusive negotiations with Superior, it stated it has “not yet determined which course of action will ultimately produce the highest otherwise best results.”
The judge’s decision to grant Hawker addition time does not impact the recent agreement between Hawker and the IAM to fund and maintain benefits of the defined benefit plan for active and retired members of Local 733. Under the agreement, which was ratified by members, the current plan will be frozen and replaced with a defined contribution plan and a 401k saving plan.
