How airBaltic went from A220 success story to Chapter 11

For a few years, airBaltic looked like one of Europe's smartest small airlines. It flew a young, all-Airbus A220 fleet out of Riga, built bases in Tallinn and Vilnius, and talked about growing to about 100 jets. Today it is in bankruptcy court in New York, shrinking its fleet by a third and planning to cut up to 700 jobs.

The airline is still flying, and your ticket is still good. But the fall has been fast, and it says a lot about how fragile a small airline can be.

The Chapter 11 filing

airBaltic filed for Chapter 11 on Sept. 14, 2026, in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. Foreign airlines often use US bankruptcy law because it lets them keep flying while they rework their debts. LATAM, Avianca and SAS all went this route.

The airline listed about $583 million in debt and aircraft lease payments. It also owed about €106 million in unpaid payroll taxes, airline taxes and fees. Before it filed, it tried to raise up to €257 million in new debt at about 25% interest. Bondholders holding more than 70% of its debt reportedly preferred to liquidate, so the airline turned to the court instead.

It now has a commitment for €350 million in new financing from a group of lenders that includes Barclays, Morgan Stanley and Oaktree. Two days after the filing, the judge let airBaltic tap the first €140 million. The airline hopes to finish the process by June 2027.

How it got here

No single blow sank airBaltic. It was a chain of them.

First came the pandemic, which pushed the airline to retire its older Boeing 737s and Dash 8 turboprops and go all-in on the A220. Then Russia's invasion of Ukraine wiped out some of its best routes. The airline had bought jets for traffic that never came back.

Next came engine trouble. The A220 uses Pratt & Whitney's geared turbofan, and inspections of that engine grounded an average of eight airBaltic jets in 2024. At the worst point, 13 sat idle. In early 2025, airBaltic canceled about 4,670 flights and suspended 19 routes because it did not have enough planes. To earn money from the jets it did have, it flew many of them for other airlines, mostly in the Lufthansa Group.

Leadership changed, too. The Latvian government, which owns about 88% of the airline, pushed out CEO Martin Gauss in April 2025. Erno Hildén, a former Finnair and SAS executive, took over that December. He was CFO at SAS when it filed for Chapter 11 in 2022. Lufthansa holds a small stake, which would become 10% if airBaltic ever lists its shares.

The final blow was fuel. airBaltic sold its fuel hedges in March 2026 to stay within its cash limits. Weeks later, the US–Iran conflict sent jet fuel prices soaring. The airline lost €44.3 million in 2025 and could not absorb the shock.

What the new airBaltic looks like

The plan is to get smaller. airBaltic will cut its A220 fleet from 54 jets to about 36 by the end of 2026. It owns only 15 of them, so most of the others will go back to their lessors. Latvia's prime minister has said about 30 planes would be enough for the Baltic market.

On Oct. 5, the airline said it would cut 500 to 700 jobs across Riga, Vilnius and Tallinn. That is up to 23% of its staff. It plans to lean more on flying for other airlines all year round and to focus its network on the routes that make money. It has not yet said which routes will go. Kaunas service was already suspended in May because of fuel costs.

What it means if you are booked

For now, little changes. airBaltic says flights are running as scheduled. The court has let it keep honoring tickets, refunds, vouchers and loyalty points. You do not need to do anything.

Do watch your booking over the winter. As the fleet shrinks, expect fewer flights on thinner routes and some schedule changes. If a route you use disappears, you are entitled to a refund under EU rules.

In Riga, the airport's main lounges are the Primeclass Business Lounge and the Kepler Club. Both are run by independent lounge companies, not by airBaltic, and both take Priority Pass.

airBaltic's story is a warning. A great plane does not guarantee a great business. A small airline built for fast growth has little room for bad luck, and airBaltic got more than its share. Chapter 11 may give it the best chance to survive, but it will be a smaller airline when it comes out.