Air Afrique's mayday call

Air Afrique staff oppose plans to liquidate the airline

Ten transport ministers from 11 African countries that have a stake in Air Afrique are meeting in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, to decide the future of the cash-strapped carrier.

More than 500 workers demonstrated outside the meeting to protest against proposals to either liquidate or break up the airline.

The World Bank last week wrote to the Chadian and Ivorian transport ministers proposing two possible solutions for ending the airline's long-running crisis, both involving liquidation.

This has angered Air Afrique staff and some shareholders who see the company as an African success story despite its financial troubles.

The World Bank denies that the organisation itself proposed liquidation, stressing it was only forwarding the recommendations of the US consultancy, which it funded to prepare Air Afrique for privatisation.

Protests

Air Afrique has been hit by strikes since Jeffrey Erickson, the former chief executive of failed US airline TWA, and his team were appointed as interim managers in January to restructure the company.

Erickson is the former chief executive of failed US airline TWA

Mr Erickson works for the consultancy Simat, Helliesen and Eichner, which supplied the liquidation recommendations to the World Bank.

The management of the carrier has denied it is planning to liquidate the airline and says it is working toward a restructuring and privatisation.

In February, Mr Ericsson announced plans to lay off some 2,000 employees, half of Air Afrique's staff but later backtracked, offering voluntary retirement.

Unions called the technical layoffs "illegal and illegitimate".

Financial crisis

Air Afrique, which has been in a financial crisis and bailed out four times since 1993, is carrying debts estimated to be 332bn CFA francs ($431m).

Five Air Afrique Airbus planes have been impounded by creditors since 1999, the most recent in February.

Air Afrique, launched in 1961, is 68.4% owned by 11 west African states (Benin, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Ivory Coast, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal and Togo), 11.8% by Air France, 8.9% by the French Development Agency and the rest by three private stockholders.

It flies between the capitals of the African states and New York, Zurich, Paris, Lisbon, Rome, Johannesburg, Nairobi and Jeddah.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) lists Air Afrique as one of the top five airlines in Africa, alongside EgyptAir, Kenya Airways, Royal Air Maroc and South Africa Airways.