Argentina’s President Javier Milei intends to sign a decree next week aimed at the privatization of flag carrier Aerolineas Argentinas, said presidential spokesman Manuel Adorni.
Milei says the current structure of Argentina’s largest airline is bloated and is costing the country too much. His efforts to trim costs have prompted fierce protests by unions.
“Since its re-nationalization in 2008, state subsidies to cover the company’s deficits have topped $8 billion,” Adorni said in a press conference on Friday.
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Adorni said Aerolineas currently employs 1,204 pilots to fly 81 planes, or nearly 15 pilots per plane.
He had said earlier in September that Aerolineas had trimmed its total workforce by 1,500 employees in recent months.
The decree could allow Aerolineas to take steps toward privatization such as hiring banks or sounding out potential buyers, a company source said.
However, Congress could still override Milei’s decree, as it has done several times before. Milei’s libertarian party only has a small number of seats in the legislature, though he has won over allies from the main conservative bloc.
With information from Reuters
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