Two former Blue Islands aircraft which were detained at Guernsey Airport have now been released after an agreement was reached over outstanding fees.
The pair of ATR-72 aircraft leased by the airline were impounded when it abruptly ceased operations in November.
At the time, States Trading Supervisory Board President Deputy Mark Helyar declined to reveal how much money was owed, but confirmed that the outstanding charges were “due to operational costs such as landing fees”.
Tonight, Guernsey Ports confirmed that a settlement had now been agreed with the owners of the two aircraft to recover of the majority of the debt owed.
The authority said that a claim would be made to the airline’s liquidators to recover the remaining fees.
Blue Islands’ three other leasewd planes had been held in Jersey, but the last one on the island left on Saturday afternoon.
This was just a few days after Ports of Jersey confirmed it was in “confidential commercial negotiations” with the aircraft’s owner.
Commenting on the Guernsey result this afternoon, Deputy Helyar said: “It has involved some very complex, detailed discussions with the owners of these aircraft, with expert legal assistance being provided by the Law Officers. As a result we have now reached a settlement that is very positive for the island, which is a credit to the team involved.”
The STSB was advised by the Law Officers in its negotiations with the aircraft owners, so no legal costs were incurred.