=20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- This article was sent to you by someone who found it on SF Gate. The original article can be found on SFGate.com here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=3D/news/archive/2002/10/23/f= inancial2049EDT0376.DTL ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Wednesday, October 23, 2002 (AP) Discount airline Vanguard says it will likely liquidate JOSH FREED, Associated Press Writer (10-23) 17:49 PDT KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Vanguard Airlines Inc. will probably be sold off in pieces rather than f= ly again in the hands of an investor, company officials said Wednesday. Talks are still under way with one unidentified investor, said Vanguard chief financial officer David A. Rescino. But those talks are uncertain enough that the airline can no longer delay selling its assets, he said. Referring to a potential deal with the unnamed investor, Vanguard attorn= ey Daniel Flanigan said, "We're not optimistic that anything like that is really going to happen. ... We really don't much hope for anything other than a straight liquidation." The absence of a buyer for its federal operating certificate reduces Vanguard to a collection of spare airplane parts, ground equipment and office furniture. Vanguard's assets have been valued at more than $4 million. The company flew leased jets. Flanigan said the company believes it will be able to pay off its secured creditors, and make at least partial payments to unsecured creditors, including employees and passengers. Vanguard hasn't flown since July 31 when it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, laid off more than 1,000 employees and stranded about 6,500 customers. Robert H. Brooks, owner of the Hooters restaurant chain owner, had made = an offer for the airline, saying he wanted to rebuild it as Hooters Air. But Vanguard rejected his offer as inadequate. Rescino said money isn't the sticking point for Vanguard's potential investor. Rather, the investor must decide whether he really wants to buy an airline, Rescino said. "There is no timeframe," Rescino said. "If his interest is expressed tomorrow, if his interest is expressed next week, all that changes is there might be a couple less spare parts lying around because we already sold them to somebody else." =20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright 2002 AP