Brasília, 6/16/2006 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - The president of the Civil Aviation Agency (Agência Nacional de Aviação Civil) (Anac), Milton Zuanazzi, says that his organization has a contingency plan in case Varig goes bankrupt. "We continue to hope there will be solution for the Varig problem. But just in case, we have a plan. It would be irresponsible for Anac not to have alternatives," he declared. However, Zuanazzi added that the plan was secret and would only be revealed if Varig went bankrupt and stopped all operations. "By keeping the plan secret we avoid panic," he explained.

Anac spokespersons reported that so far they have received only three complaints about late Varig flights. That was on June 6 in Rio (2) and São Paulo.

The Varig problem remains undefined. The judge handling the case in a Rio business court is still examining a bid made by a group representing Varig employees (the only bid made at a recent auction). No one knows when the judge will reach a final decision. If he decides not to accept the bid, the company will probably be declared bankrupt. In that case it is automatically grounded.

Translation: Allen Bennett

Translation: Allen Bennett