The case was filed yesterday at the court of Ponta Delgada and then at the Central Civil and Criminal Court of Ponta Delgada.

The Azorean airline will now be notified to respond to the enforcement procedure.

SATA's board of directors informed Açoriano Oriental that the airline "regrets the path chosen" by the company Aircraft Engine Lease Finance Limited, now taking the judicial route to receive money from SATA.

The board of directors of the Azorean airline stated that the company underwent talks with all creditors at the very beginning of the pandemic as a management measure.

"The process has been underway for some months now and most of SATA's partners, with whom agreements have been reached, understand the situation. Occasionally, there are more intransigent partners, who are less willing to negotiate. This is the first case in which a partner decided, in their own right, there was no room for negotiation and chose to follow the judicial route", stated the administration of the SATA group.

The same source reaffirmed its availability for dialogue but is “intransigent in defending the future of the SATA group".

Aircraft Engine Lease Finance Limited is as a company that promotes leasing of commercial aircraft and engines, providing financial and liquidity solutions for airlines around the world.

The company, created in 2015 in Puerto Rico, states on its online platform that it provides services to various airlines all over the world.

"Our team has significant experience in acquiring, leasing, managing and trading mid-life aircraft and engines throughout their life cycle", as described in the Aircraft Engine Lease Finance Limited website.