Scandinavian airline SAS has exited US Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, the carrier announced on Wednesday (28 August).

The move, described as ¡°a new era¡± for the company, comes after the European Commission last month approved the carrier¡¯s restructure plan, which will see Air France-KLM?take an initial 19.9 per cent stake?in SAS, and just days ahead of its entry into the SkyTeam airline alliance on 1 September.?

Since filing for?Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection?in the US two years ago, the airline has restructured more than US$2 billion of debt, adjusted its aircraft fleet and reached agreements with stakeholders, creditors and vendors, the carrier said.

The exit financing transaction included a?total investment of US$1.2 billion in the now restructured SAS, which comprised US$475 million in new unlisted equity and US$725 million in secured convertible debt.

SAS CEO and president Anko van der Werff said: ¡°This is a historic day?that marks the?start of an exciting future for SAS¡¯ customers, partners and colleagues. We have successfully completed our restructuring proceedings and we are now entering a new era.

¡°Now, we must look ahead and complete the transformation that we have started, continue our commitment to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, and?take advantage of the opportunities in a growing market,¡± he said.

SAS recently reported seeing a ¡°continued increase in passenger volumes¡±. In July, load factor for the carrier exceeded 87 per cent, marking ¡°one of the best months historically in terms of load factor¡±, while revenue passenger kilometres also saw a 6 per cent year-on-year increase.