Vanuatu's government confirmed this morning that the country's national carrier had been placed into voluntary liquidation.
The appointment of voluntary liquidators comes after a day of travel chaos yesterday, with all flights this week cancelled at short notice.
A statement this morning formally announced: "The Vanuatu government has today placed Air Vanuatu into voluntary liquidation.
"Morgan Kelly, Justin Walsh, and Andrew Hanson of EY [Ernst and Young Australia] have been appointed Voluntary Liquidators of Air Vanuatu (Operations) Limited (In Liquidation).
"Representatives of the Voluntary Liquidator are now in Vanuatu conducting safety and maintenance checks of the fleet, ahead of resumption of operations as soon as possible."
Flights have been canned as Vanuatu’s government considers placing the national carrier into voluntary administration. (Source: 1News)
Kelly will hold a press conference in Sydney later today as questions swirl around where this leaves travellers.
"The appointment follows a challenging period for the global aviation industry, including labour shortages, inflation affecting input costs and a global increasing cost of credit environment.
"Air Vanuatu has been particularly affected by disruption of tourism activity due to cyclones," the statement added. "The Liquidators intend to resume normal trading as soon as possible, while considering all opportunities to place the carrier on a stronger footing.
"Affected travellers will be informed of this disruption and rebooked on flights as soon as operations resume."
Kelly said the airline is "critical" to the Pacific island nation, adding liquidators are working closely with airline management.
"The outlook for the airline is positive, despite pressures on the broader industry, and we will be focused on securing the future of this strategically vital national carrier."
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