aha! – owned by regional airline ExpressJet, and a pandemic created project – has filed for bankruptcy, listing assets of no more than US$50million.
ExpressJet, at its peak, operated over 450 aircraft – favouring Embraer ERJ145s in its fleet – but in 2020 filed for bankruptcy. But for aha! – named one of the fastest growing regional airlines in the US in July – this is a huge blow.
Originally set up as an airline that would operate to underserved destinations in a point to point network, over the past six months aha! has been operating out of Reno-Tahoe airport, flying to 11 different destinations across the US, with the most recent route to Idaho Falls being added on August 11.
“A combination of conditions led us to this decision,” ExpressJet CEO Subodh Karnik said in a statement. “Despite the valiant efforts of our employees to overcome challenges, and despite great support by our cities and airports – especially Reno-Tahoe and the community there, we arrived at a point where termination of operations was in the best interest of our stakeholders.”
