medford, ore.
Portland aviation company closer to ending bankruptcy
A struggling Portland aviation company is one step closer to emerging from bankruptcy.
The Mail Tribune reported that a U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge in Dallas Tuesday confirmed Erickson Inc.’s reorganization plan less than five months after the company entered court protection in November.
Erickson president and CEO Jeff Roberts said Wednesday that the company now has a clear path out of bankruptcy.
When Erickson filed for Chapter 11 in November, it listed $561 million in debt. The company went public in 2012 and acquired Evergreen Helicopters and Air Amazonia in 2013, leaving the company with $355 million in debt just as the oil and gas market began to decline.
PITTSBURGH
Kraft Heinz lays off 200 white-collar workers
Kraft Heinz Co. has laid off 200 white-collar workers in Canada and the United States.
Michael Mullen, the company’s senior vice president of corporate and government affairs, said the company is realigning its administrative functions to be more efficient.
The company didn’t say where the layoffs occurred.
Kraft Heinz is dually headquartered in Pittsburgh and Chicago since the Pittsburgh-based H.J. Heinz Co. and Kraft Foods Group of Illinois merged two years ago.
The company has about 41,000 employees worldwide.
The workers being laid off have all been notified and Mullen said the company appreciates their contributions.
SISTERS, ORE.
Oregon airport accused of misspending grant funds
A central Oregon municipal airport must repay nearly $400,000 in grant money that state officials said the airport misused.
The Bulletin of Bend reports that according to a review by the Oregon Department of Transportation, Sisters Eagle Airport owner Benny Benson misused some of the money he received in transportation grant funds for runway and airport improvements.
State officials said that more than half of the misused portion of the grant money was paid to Benson, airport managers and companies headed by Benson.
The Oregon Department of Transportation explained that the grant money was misspent in a letter to Benson dated Tuesday.
Benson said Thursday that he was surprised to hear about the Oregon Department of Transportation’s demand letter. He said he expected the Oregon Department of Transportation to make a phone call, not just send a letter. Benson said he plans to hire an attorney to respond to the agency.
