UK Aviation Firm Buys LAB Stake

Transatlantic Aviation Limited (TAA) of the UK has bought a 50% stake in troubled Bolivian flagship airline Lloyd Aéreo Boliviano (LAB). The investment plan includes the immediate use of two aircraft to allow LAB to restart its most lucrative routes – to Spain and the US. The shares sold to TAA were those belonging to former LAB president, Ernesto Asbún, currently on the run facing charges of financial mismanagement. He handed them over to LAB’s workers in July. They have been running the airline since then. Three-quarters of the airline’s fleet has been out of operation since the beginning of the year due to mounting debt.