Dublin-based jet repair firm Empathy Aviation goes into liquidation

Empathy Aviation, an aircraft maintenance startup that was based at Dublin Airport, has gone into liquidation.

he firm, which during the summer had insisted it expected business to improve “significantly” in the second part of this year, was owned by the same shareholders behind a Turkish aircraft maintenance company, TDT Havacilik Bakim.

Empathy was granted a licence to operate from Dublin Airport in 2019 by the Irish Aviation Authority.

Up until a few months ago it had been in discussions with a Turkish airline to provide maintenance for the carrier at Dublin.

The onset of the Covid pandemic hit the business badly, accounts for Empathy confirm.

“The downturn of the global economy and the high degree of uncertainty due to the Covid pandemic led to trading difficulties for the last two years,” the accounts signed off at the end of July note.

“The aviation industry and aircraft maintenance has been badly impacted due to worldwide travel restrictions and it is slow to rebound, resulting in many companies in the industry becoming bankrupt and closing during the pandemic period,” they add.

Empathy Aviation made a €154,000 loss last year and that brought its accumulated losses to more than €921,000 at the end of December.

It said that to combat the effects of the pandemic on its business, Empathy Aviation had received and continued to receive financial support from TDT Havacilik Bakim, a company with common shareholders.

The Turkish company had confirmed during the summer that it would continue to provide financial support to the Irish firm by providing an extension to existing facilities and providing further cash investment in Empathy.

Empathy Aviation noted that it has approval to operate at Dublin Airport, which it added would improve its business opportunities.

“The licence is a valuable asset but no monetary value is reflected in the financial statements,” the accounts note.

Empathy Aviation said it had also applied for an extension of the terms of the licence which would see the business exit its startup phase and allow it to operate in locations outside Ireland. The company said it was in continuous contact with the Irish Aviation Authority to finalise that process.

“As a result, the directors have prepared a business plan to recover from the Covid-related issues and expect the business to improve significantly in the latter part of 2022 and continuing into 2023,” the accounts for Empathy note.

“They are currently in discussions with a Turkish airline for their cover in Dublin and are also working on opening five stations in Turkey,” they add. “Projections prepared by management reflect these opportunities, which will generate steady consistent income each month that will allow the company to achieve profitability in the near future.”

It owned €513,000 to TDT Havacilik Bakim as of the end of last December and short-term investment was planned to enable it to clear outstanding liabilities.

However, the Empathy Aviation entered voluntary liquidation last week, with an official notice stating that due to the extent of its liabilities, it cannot continue in business.