An unnamed Saudi investor linked to the royal family has finalised an investment agreement with Pakistan's Shaheen Air International (Karachi International), DunyaNews has reported. The takeover is expected to conclude within the next two months.
"We have finalised the deal with a Saudi Prince. This deal will be a breakthrough for the airline as well as for the Pakistani aviation industry," Acting CEO Javed Sehbai said.
The airline is expected to resume operations, which have been suspended since late September, in "the next few weeks".
Sehbai added that the airline would now prioritise repaying all its debts to employees and the government. He also thanked the Civil Aviation Authority (PkCAA) and the tax collector (Federal Board of Revenue) for leniency.
Earlier, unconfirmed news broke that the Saudi investors would have backed out of the deal as the airline reportedly presented them with forged reports.
Shaheen Air suspended flights in late September under a mountain of debts. Among Shaheen Air's largest creditors are the Pakistani CAA which is owed PKR1.5 billion rupees (USD12.2 million), the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) which is owed PKR1.4 billion rupees (USD11.4 million), and Sialkot International Airport Ltd which is due PKR140 million (USD1.14 million).
On the same day an accord was reached with the investors, the PkCAA sealed all offices of Shaheen Air due to its debt, Pakistan Today has reported.
