AirAsia Japan filed for bankruptcy protection this week, and is unable to refund thousands of tickets booked by customers.
Tamotsu Ueno, a court-appointed lawyer handling the company’s bankruptcy, said about 23,000 tickets booked direct with AirAsia Japan are very unlikely to be refunded.
Ueno said the company will seek financial assistance from major shareholders such as e-commerce company Rakuten to help return money to customers.
The airline has liabilities of $208 million but the total value of tickets yet to be refunded is much higher than that.
The airline grounded flights in April due to the pandemic and resumed some domestic services in the summer.
However, it struggled to fill seats and suspended services again.
AirAsia announced last month it would shut down the airline.
Customers will likely be offered credits for flights operated by other AirAsia Group airlines in Asia, Ueno said.
Written by Ray Montgomery, Asia Editor
