Kitty Hawk, a cargo airline headquartered at Dallas/Fort Worth Airport, filed for bankruptcy Monday, citing high fuel prices and slow demand.
It’s the second time in seven years the airline has filed for bankruptcy. The carrier specializes in overnight delivery of high-priority items that often can’t be processed by FedEx or UPS. For example, it can transport exotic animals or priceless works of art.
The firm has a fleet of Boeing 737 and 727 cargo airplanes, and a cargo warehouse and U.S. Customs clearance facility in Indiana.
But revenues have dropped in the past year as the economy slowed, while costs, driven by fuel prices, have spiked. It lost $14 million last year, and nearly $20 million during the first half of 2007, according to financial filings.
In July, Kitty Hawk hired Raymond James & Associates to help evaluate its prospects for a possible sale. The firm’s chief executive, Robert Zoller, stepped down in April, along with Chairman Gerald Gitner and two other board members.
In a prepared statement, executives said the airline will operate normally while in bankruptcy and continue to work to “address financial challenges through a restructuring transaction.” Kitty Hawk filed for bankruptcy in 2000, and emerged two years later.
-- Trebor
