Yesterday, July 7th, a PLAY Air jet landed at the Reykjavik airport for the first time.
The flight was in celebration of PLAY’s opening on the Icelandic stock market. The highland flight included a bell ringing ceremony, with CEO Birgir Jónsson stating:
“Of course, we are just incredibly happy and moved by the reception the company is receiving. From people, from travelers, people who are buying tickets to and from Iceland, and all these investors who have faith in the company now and not least this huge number of individuals.”
According to Vísir, PLAY Air’s stock offering has been going well, with much higher demand for shares than are available.
The celebrations come in the midst of continued disputes from PLAY Air’s predecessor, WOW Air, the now-bankrupt airline whose board has formed the backbone of PLAY Air’s corporate structure.
As Fréttablaðið reports, Michele Ballarin, the American heiress who acquired the remains of WOW, has continued her legal battle with the WOW Air bankruptcy estate over the usage of the name of the former airline.
Ballerin’s lawyer, Páll Águst Ólafsson, said the following in a statement:
“If you sell a car, you can not count on being able to continue using it […] It is naturally incomprehensible that they should be using a product that has been sold […] Especially in light of the fact that there are plans to revive this name on some kind of positive basis and it is clearly not in the interest of the name that a bankruptcy estate should have the same name.”
Further dispute concerns WOW Air flight manuals, which despite having been paid for, have not yet been relinquished to Ballerin.
For some background to the Ballerin and PLAY Air legacy, check these out for more information.
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