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Bloomberg News reports that Brookfield and GIC are close to a binding offer for National Storage.
Bloomberg News, citing sources familiar with the situation, reported Sunday that Brookfield Asset Management (BAM) and Singapore's GIC were close to making a binding bid for National Storage REIT. The deal could value the Sydney listed company at around 4 billion Australian Dollars ($2.65 billion). The report stated that the parties were finalizing the details of the deal, which could be announced as early as Monday. Brookfield and GIC had also made good progress in their due diligence process on National Storage. The report states that the price for the binding offer will likely be the same in November as the conditional offer. Could not verify immediately the report. National Storage REIT announced last month that it received an A$4.02 Billion buyout offer by a consortium consisting of Brookfield, Singapore's GIC and other companies. This would have been the largest real estate privatisation in Australia. ($1 = 1,5067 Australian Dollars) (Reporting and editing by Andrea Ricci in Bengaluru)
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Canada's Air Transat suspends flights after pilots union strikes notice
Transat AT, a Canada-listed tour operator, announced on Sunday that Air Transat, Canada, will suspend its flights from December 8 to 9 after receiving a 72-hour notice of strike by ALPA, the union which represents the 700 pilots at the company. Air Transat's pilots may begin their strike as early at 3:00 am. Air Line Pilots Association said that the strike would begin at 3:00 AM ET on December 10. The Canadian leisure carrier deemed the strike announcement "premature", given the progress made at the bargaining tables. It said that it had offered compromises including a salary increase of 59% over five years, and improved working conditions. Bradley Small, Chair of the Air Transat Master Executive Council, said: "There's still time to avoid striking, but unless there are significant improvements at the bargaining tables, we may strike to get a modern contract." Transat AT reported that Air Transat was working with the union in order to avoid a strike, but it will stop all operations on December 9th to ensure passengers and crews are not left stranded. Transat AT Inc. offers Air Transat as a brand. Reporting by Abu Sultan in Bengaluru and Shivani Tana; editing by Andrea Ricci
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American Airlines asks for notices regarding the bankruptcy of Spirit Airlines
According to a court document, American Airlines has filed an appearance notice in the bankruptcy proceedings of Spirit Aviation and requested that all notices and documents be served going forward. Spirit filed for bankruptcy a second-time in August as it struggled to deal with its dwindling reserves of cash and increasing losses. The airline stated that it was looking at all possible options in its restructuring, including a merger and sale of the business. American Airlines filed a request in the Southern District Court of New York on December 5, requesting to receive all notices, including operating reports and plans of reorganization, as well as liquidation statements. Spirit and American didn't immediately respond to a comment request. Spirit Airlines has previously stated that they are considering all options to ensure the future of their airline. Spirit actively explores all possible opportunities. The merger or sale of Spirit could maximize value. Spirit stated in a SEC filing in October that the company was actively involved in discussions with several interested counterparties. The U.S. Supreme Court earlier this year rejected a request from American Airlines to overturn a judicial ruling that found the company's scrapped U.S. Northeast Partnership with JetBlue Airways in violation of federal antitrust laws. JetBlue and United Airlines have partnered in a partnership since then. You can also Both airlines' websites allow travelers to book flights. Spirit Airlines urged the U.S. Transportation Department in June to reject the collaboration of United and JetBlue. Spirit Airlines said it was anti-competitive and that other large airlines would pursue similar deals. Reporting by Doyinsola Oladipo in New York, editing by Andrea Ricci
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American Airlines asks for notices regarding the bankruptcy of Spirit Airlines
According to a court document, American Airlines has filed an appearance notice in the bankruptcy proceedings of Spirit Aviation and requested that all notices and documents be served going forward. Spirit filed for bankruptcy a second-time in August as it struggled to deal with its dwindling reserves of cash and increasing losses. The airline stated that it was looking at all possible options, including a merger and sale of the business. American Airlines filed a request in the Southern District Court of New York on December 5, requesting to receive all notices, including operating reports and plans of reorganization, as well as liquidation statements. Spirit and American didn't immediately respond to a comment request. Spirit Airlines has previously stated that they are considering all options to ensure the future of their airline. Spirit actively explores all possible opportunities. The merger or sale of Spirit could maximize value. Spirit stated in a SEC filing in October that it was actively in talks with several interested counterparties. (Reporting from Doyinsola Oladipo in New York, editing by Andrea Ricci.)
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Southwest Airlines fined $11 million by the US for holiday meltdown in 2022
The Trump Administration announced Saturday that it would waive a $11 million fine on Southwest Airlines, as part of the $140 million settlement for the airline's meltdown during a busy travel season in December 2022. Southwest Airlines in December 2023 will pay $35 million in cash and $90 million worth of travel vouchers for passengers who are delayed by at least 3 hours in reaching their final destination due to an airline issue or cancellation. This is because the airline handled the meltdown which stranded over 2 million passengers. In a written order, the U.S. Transportation Department cited Southwest Airlines' decision to invest more than $1 billion into its operations since the 2022 crash to improve performance and reliability as the reason for its decision to waive the remaining $11 millions of the fine due by January 31. Reporting by David Shepardson, Editing by Chizu nomiyama
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Merz and Macron to discuss fate FCAS fighter jet in the week of December 15, says industry source
A source in the industry said that the German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and the French President Emmanuel Macron plan to discuss the fate the troubled Franco German fighter jet project FCAS – or SCAF – during the week of December 15. The Future Combat Air System (FCAS), a 100 billion-euro ($116-billion) project that was floated over eight years ago, is mired in disputes among the companies concerned about workshare and prized technologies. A source with knowledge of the project said earlier this week that the defence ministers from the participating countries, Germany, France, and Spain, will meet on the 11th to discuss it. The German government spokesperson refused to comment on the exact date but only said that the appointments made by the chancellor will be made public at the appropriate time. The French government did not respond to a request for comment. The French government was not immediately available for comment.
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Bloomberg News reports that Indian and US investigators will meet next week to discuss the Air India crash.
Bloomberg News reported that India would send investigators next week to the United States to review data collected on the fatal Air India crash in June, with the National Transportation Safety Board. The report cited people with knowledge of the situation as saying that Indian investigators planned to share their findings, which included any information they gleaned from cockpit voice and flight recorders. Could not verify immediately the report. The report stated that the meeting would take place at the NTSB headquarters in Washington D.C. Other parties, including Boeing representatives, will also be present. Boeing referred all comments to the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau. NTSB, India’s civil aviation ministry, and the AAIB didn't immediately respond to requests for comments. Shortly after takeoff, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner departing from Ahmedabad in India and heading to London began to lose thrust. The 242 passengers and 19 people on the ground were all killed, except for one. (Reporting and editing by Aidan Lewis, Aurora Ellis and Yazhini MV from Bengaluru)
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IAEA: Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant temporarily lost electricity overnight
The International Atomic Energy Agency reported on Saturday that Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant temporarily lost all of its off-site electricity overnight. It cited Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi. Since March 2022 when Russian forces seized much of the southeast Ukraine, this nuclear plant - Europe's biggest - has been under Russian authority. The plant is currently not producing electricity, but it relies on external power in order to keep the material cool and prevent a meltdown. IAEA reported that the plant had been reconnected after a 30-minute outage to a power line of 330 kilovolts (kV). The Russian-installed plant management said that the 750 kV power line, which was also previously disconnected, was now back in operation. Stable power supply was restored, they added. The management stated that radiation levels were normal. IAEA said that widespread military activities over night affected Ukraine's power grid, and caused operating nuclear power plants to reduce their output. Reporting by Gnaneshwarrajan and Yazhini MV in Bengaluru, Editing by Aidan Lewis & Bernadettebaum
US Supreme Court hears case of trucker fired for stopped working drug test from cannabis-based CBD
The U.S. Supreme Court tackled a case on Tuesday including a New york city state male who was fired from his task as a business truck driver for stopping working a. drug test after taking cannabidiol, or CBD, that he stated was. wrongly sold as doing not have the psychoactive active ingredient present in. marijuana.
The justices heard an appeal led by Medical Cannabis Inc. of a lower court's choice enabling complainant Douglas. Horn to bring a civil claim against the San Diego,. California-based business under the Racketeer Influenced and. Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. This 1970 federal law was. created to punish organized crime and its economic. effect.
The civil provisions of the law authorization triple damages for. effective suits by anybody injured in his organization or. home as an outcome of certain actions by an offender.
Horn, who was ailing from injuries sustained in a trucking. mishap, in 2012 acquired a CBD tincture called Dixie X. It. was promoted as a natural painkiller consisting of no. tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychedelic component in. cannabis that triggers a high.
After a random drug test ordered by his employer identified. THC in his system, Horn was fired from his trucking job that he. had actually held for more than a decade. Horn has stated he is not a. marijuana user.
Some of the justices appeared responsive to the company's. argument that Horn's loss of work was not the type of. organization injury that Congress suggested to guard against when it. enacted the RICO Act.
Conservative Justice Brett Kavanaugh expressed issue about. making it too simple for complainants to bring civil RICO suits. simply by identifying specific accidents as injuries. to business or residential or commercial property.
That would be a dramatic, really radical shift in how tort. suits are brought throughout the United States, Kavanaugh informed. Horn's attorney Easha Anand, referring to accident law,. referred to as torts.
And we would expect a clearer indication from Congress,. Kavanaugh included.
Lisa Blatt, the lawyer who represented Medical Cannabis,. argued that allowing Horn's match to proceed would open the door. to complainants making a federal case out of personal injury. problems better addressed under state law.
It is utterly implausible that Congress federalized every. slip and fall involving RICO predicates, Blatt stated, referring. to RICO crimes such as embezzlement, extortion or mail scams.
But questions posed by a few of the justices recommended they. may be inclined to let Horn's civil RICO match continue.
If you're damaged when you lose a task, then you have actually been. injured in your organization, have not you? liberal Justice Elena. Kagan asked Blatt.
I guess what I'm stating is the simplest, clearest reading. of this statutory language is it doesn't identify by what. triggers the damage, Kagan added. It just says, if you're damaged. in a way that remains in your organization or home, which has actually been. understood to consist of being hurt by loss of a job, and that's. by reason of a (racketeering activity), then you're entitled to. threefold the damages you would otherwise be.
Horn and his partner, Cindy, in 2015 brought a claim in. federal court in New York state looking for monetary damages,. declaring, among other things, that Medical Cannabis and. associated companies broke RICO's arrangements. Horn had the. cast independently tested in a laboratory, which verified. that the item consisted of THC.
According to the suit, a pattern of racketeering activity. by the business - including violations of the federal. Controlled Substances Act, as well as mail fraud and wire fraud. - caused an organization or home injury on Horn in the form of. his shooting.
A federal trial judge ruled versus Horn's civil RICO claim. The New York-based second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed. the judge's decision, prompting Medical Cannabis's appeal to. the Supreme Court.
The justices are expected to rule in the case by the end of. June.
(source: Reuters)