Flair Airlines says it has reorganized its governance structure to align with Canadian ownership rules.
According to a report from Canadian Press, the airline also says it may seek to take the company public in an effort to address its debt to Miami-based investor 777 Partners, which continues to be a stumbling block.
Last month, the Canadian Transport Agency (CTA) issued a preliminary report that the low-cost carrier may not be controlled by Canadians and could face a possible suspension of its operating licence.
Foreign entities are restricted to 49% ownership of a Canadian commercial carrier, with no single foreign entity allowed to own more than 25%.
Flair has asked for an 18-month exemption to the ownership rules, sparking complaints from competing carriers.
Both the National Airlines Council of Canada and the Air Transport Association of Canada, two have called on the CTA to reject Flair's request for an 18-month exemption to the rules, arguing it would set a "troubling precedent."
At an online press briefing on April 22, Flair President Stephen Jones said that Flair "is here to stay."
The CTA is concerned that 777 Partners holds a "dominant" influence over the airline.
Flair disagrees, but has made some changes, including expanding the board from five to nine members, with seven of them required to be Canadian. The company also cut the number of directors 777 Partners can appoint from three to two, and removed the U.S. investor's veto rights.
The debt Flair owes to its largest U.S. investor - which also is the lessor for seven of its 11 aircraft -- remains a potential issue under the ownership rules. Flair says it aims to rectify that situation, but says it will take time.
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