Sunwing Airlines Inc. owes Ottawa more than $316 million in unpaid federal loans that were issued during the COVID-19 pandemic as a relief measure, according to federal records.
Sunwing, which WestJet is set to acquire, was granted $316.9 million in loans by the federal government in 2020 under the “Large Employer Emergency Financing Facility,” which was intended to preserve jobs at the pandemic’s outset.
Sunwing has not yet paid any of the over $316 million in federal pandemic loans, according to records viewed by Blacklock’s Reporter, and the Department of Transport said there was “significant risk” the company wouldn’t be able to repay the borrowed funds had WestJet not bought the company out….