A BAHAMIAN investment bank is reassuring local investors with up to $118m in exposure to the Trumpinduced global markets turmoil that their investments are “well-positioned to ride out the chaos”.
David Slatter, RF Bank & Trust (Bahamas) vicepresident of investments, told Tribune Business that its three international investment funds - created to offer Bahamian investors access to global stocks, bonds and other assets denominated in US dollars and foreign currency - “have a lot of dry powder” and are structured to minmise investor risk during market downturns.
‘Legendary’ condo fight ‘poor reflection on judicial system’
• Judge blasts 12-year wait on Lucayan Towers South
• Battle for control has led to ‘disastrous consequences’
• Orders $112,100 ‘diverted’ to attorney fees be repaid
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
A “LEGENDARY”
battle for control at a prominent Freeport condominium complex has been “a poor reflection of our judicial system” due to the 12 years taken by the courts to resolve it, a Supreme Court judge blasted.
Justice Loren Klein, in an April 11, 2025, verdict asserted it was “regrettable... that it just now falls to me in 2025 to cut the Gordian knot of this protracted litigation” that has “wrought disastrous consequences” for governance, maintenance and financial stability at the Lucayan Towers South complex.
He ordered that the second of the two competing Boards, which was purportedly elected at an Extraordinary Meeting on January 9, 2013, repay some $112,100 that was taken as maintenance payments from condo owners but
“diverted” to pay the legal expenses that group was incurring in its battle with the rival Board.
Justice Klein, ruling that legal action initiated by the Extraordinary Meeting Board was “stillborn”, said the group - headed by Douglas Prudden - were “not the legitimate Board” as determined by previous Supreme Court and Court of Appeal decisions and therefore incapable of acting on Lucayan Towers’
While global stock and bond markets have somewhat stabilised, after the US president opted to pause his mass tariff hike for 90 days and impose a 10 percent “baseline” levy on all countries with the exception of China, the RF investments chief added that deciding one year ago to reduce the weighting of equities from 100 percent to 50
percent for one fund was now paying off.
But, while the initial multi-trillion dollar market sell-off has eased, uncertainty remains, and Mr Slatter told this newspaper that he expects the Bahamian economy to “slow” and “wouldn’t be surprised” if it slipped into a recession during the 2025 second half. He forecast that
• RF chief: ‘Lot of dry powder’ in US portfolio
• Slashed equity exposure to 50% in advance
• ‘Not surprised’ if Bahamas falls into recession
PI Crown Land fight receives final Privy Council go-ahead
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor
THE Bahamian entrepreneur aiming to restore Paradise Island’s lighthouse yesterday said he feels “a lot more confident” of winning his lease battle with the Government after getting final Privy Council go-ahead.
Toby Smith, confirming to Tribune Business that the Court of Appeal has granted him “final leave” to take his Crown Land lease battle before the highest court in the Bahamian judicial system, also disclosed the decision was handed down almost 14 years to the day that he began pursuing his ambition to develop a beach
break-type destination near Colonial Beach.
Appeal justice Stella Crane-Scott, in a short April 8, 2025, verdict, affirmed the Court of Appeal’s unanimous decision to permit Mr Smith and his Paradise Island Lighthouse and Beach Club Company vehicle to take their case to London after the Government, via the Attorney General’s Office, raised no objections to the move.
“Having regard to the matters set out in the affidavit of support, and having regard to the assurances of Mr Mackey that he has no objection to the motion being granted, the motion for final leave, dated February 17, 2025, is granted,” appeal justice Crane-Scott. Mr Mackey
BPL ‘came to
their
senses’ by ditching $600k payout appeal
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
A FORMER Bahamas Power & Light (BPL) executive director says he is glad the utility “came to their senses” by abandoning its bid to overturn his near-$600,000 termination payout award.
Patrick Rollins, who alleged he was terminated because of his “perceived political affiliation” with the FNM and Desmond Bannister, told Tribune Business he hopes “to see the day come in this country” when changes in government no longer result in the
arbitrary, unjust dismissal of persons simply because it is believed they have connections to the former administration.
Speaking after the Court of Appeal confirmed that BPL had withdrawn and abandoned its appeal against Sir Ian Winder’s Supreme Court ruling, where the Chief Justice awarded him 100 percent of his “breach of contract claim”, Mr Rollins said: “I’m just pleased they came to their senses and decided not to proceed with the appeal. I just hope this matter can be settled now and we can get back on with life.
is Kirkland Mackey, the attorney representing the Attorney General’s Office.
“It’s wonderful news,” Mr Smith told this newspaper of the final go-ahead.
“We are looking forward to what the future brings. We are confident we shall be successful with a favourable ruling from the Privy Council despite the Government fighting us every step of the way.
“I certainly have a lot more confidence about the outcome since Sir Michael Barnett’s ruling in the Court of Appeal, given his seasoned experience and calibre and simplification of the case. A deal was made, and the Government thought they could stick it to a Bahamian and walk away with it. Now they have met more than
“I’d like to see the day come in this country, when the Government changes, and we realise this is one country and some people work in government service just to make the country better.” BPL’s decision to withdraw its appeal now paves the way for Mr Rollins to collect on his damages award.
The former executive director, who earned an annual $180,000 salary prior to his January 21, 2022, dismissal alleged in his witness statement that he was warned by thenBPL chairman, Pedro Rolle, in December 2021 that unidentified members of the Davis Cabinet were pushing for both himself and former chief executive, Whitney Heastie, to be removed.
their match. This will be a good thing worth waiting for.”
Sir Michael, thenpresident of the Court of Appeal, in his March 14, 2024, verdict split the court with a dissenting ruling that he would order “specific performance of the lease” by the Government as Mr Smith had “a binding agreement” to lease five Crown Land acres - split into two separate parcels - for a beach break-type destination.
Both men had been appointed to their posts by the former Minnis administration, and Mr Rollins had asserted: “Chairman Rolle informed me that ‘certain people in Cabinet were asking for your head and CEO Heastie’s head because, you know, you are Desmond’s boy’.” He added that Mr Rolle asked him what sort of compensation he was willing to accept as BPL would not pay the balance of his three-year contract. However, Sir Ian rejected Mr Rollins’ claim that his dismissal, and the reasons for it, were “unfair, unreasonable, unlawfully discriminatory and unconstitutional” by finding “there is no compelling evidence” that the Davis administration’s BPL Board permitted the Government to implement a “discriminatory practice” of removing senior management executives perceived to be FNM supporters.
The BPL Board appointed by the Davis administration decided to terminate Mr Rollins at its first meeting despite one director, Cheryl Simms, an
Space X landings halted for environmental study
By FAY SIMMONS Tribune Business Reporter jsimmons@tribunemedia.net
THE Deputy Prime Minister yesterday revealed that Space X will not be conducting any further landings in The Bahamas until a full Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) has been completed.
Chester Cooper, also minister of tourism, investments and aviation, said all the debris following the March 6 explosion of SpaceX’s Starship 8 rocket has been removed from the country and related
costs were completely covered by the company.
He said that although there was a successful landing of SpaceX’s Falcon nine booster off the coast of Exuma last month, the company will be required to complete the EIA to ensure adequate safety of Bahamian residents and the environment.
“We wish to advise that there will be no further Falcon landings in the Bahamas until SpaceX and its environmental agency has completed a full Environmental Impact Assessment. You may already be aware that any additional mandates, each
require a separate licence from the Civil Aviation Authority of the Bahamas (CAAB),” said Mr Cooper.
“Regarding the debris from Starship 8’s tank, it was collected and removed outside of The Bahamas as a full expense of SpaceX. However, should any resident suspect space debris has washed ashore, please contact DEPP.
“None of it will remain in our country and The Bahamas would incur no cost. We emphasise that The Bahamas will incur no cost as a result of the debris recovery. The cost and logistics of this effort
have been handled entirely by SpaceX in accordance with the international standards, and under Bahamian oversight to ensure compliance with safety and environmental standards.”
Dr Rhianna Neely-Murphy, the Department of Environmental Planning and Protection’s (DEPP) director, said Space X has been told her agency will not approve any re-entry exercises until the post -launch report, which is expected before Easter, has been adequately
AML Foods denies blaze started in generator area
AML Foods yesterday denied reports that Monday’s blaze, which “completely” destroyed both its Solomon’s Old Trail and Cost Right Nassau locations, originated in the former store’s generator room.
The BISX-listed food retail and franchise group, in a statement, while confirming that it was “devastated” by the loss of both stores instead hinted that the fire may have resulted from construction work that was taking place at the adjacent Department of Labour building “in the vicinity of a fuel tank”.
“While the exact cause of the fire is still under investigation by the relevant authorities, we can
confirm that the fire did not originate in the generator room at the Solomon’s Old Trail location contrary to recent media reports,”
AML Foods asserted. “In fact, we confirm that as of this [Tuesday] morning, the Solomon’s generator and electrical room, which were not affected by the fire, remain intact and operational. “We understand that immediately before the fire, construction work was being carried out at the rear of the Department of Labour building in the vicinity of a fuel tank. We can also confirm that this construction work was in no way affiliated with Solomon’s or Cost Right.”
AML Foods reaffirmed that employees from both Solomon’s Old Trail and Cost Right are being redeployed to other stores within the group to ensure no jobs are lost. It is also exploring how Cost Right’s products can be temporarily offered at its Solomon’s Yamacraw store as well as through its website. Customers are also being redirected to order online from Solomon’s Yamacraw.
“It is with heavy hearts that we confirm that it appears that both Solomon’s Old Trail and Cost Right Nassau have been completely lost due to the fire that occurred yesterday [Monday],” AML Foods said. “While the damage to the building is significant,
we are incredibly thankful to report that all staff and customers were safely evacuated before the fire spread.....
“While we are devastated by the loss of our stores, our commitment to our employees and the community is as strong as ever. We have
$118M BAHAMIAN FUNDS ‘WELL POSITIONED TO RIDE OUT CHAOS’
Mr Trump’s trade and tariff fall-out is unlikely to just be a short-term impact, with much depending on how US consumer confidence and demand responds.
RF Bank & Trust’s three international funds accessible to Bahamian investors are the Targeted Income Fund, which focuses on bonds and fixed income securities; the International Opportunities Fund that is geared towards global equity investments; and the Hedged Strategies Fund which acts as a fund-offunds seeking to exploit the expertise of multiple investment managers. Suggesting that he and RF Bank & Trust fortuitously acted ahead of the curve, Mr Slatter said: “The International Opportunities
Fund, our equities fund, over a year ago we thought equity values were very rich and expected a recession, so we made the decision to reduce equities investments.
“Our International Opportunities Fund is now 50/50 between equities exposure and non-equities exposure. Back in the day it was 100 percent equities. We were a year earlier than we expected, but think we got it right on equity exposure. Although the equity portfolio is not doing well, the non-equity portfolio is helping to offset the pain. It’s faring better than many funds with a similar strategy.”
As for the Hedged Strategies Fund, Mr Slatter added that while returns for March 2025 were down it was still
up for the first quarter as a whole. “It’s objective is to use hedge fund managers to minimise the downside risk while allowing it to benefit from the upside. The fund was down in March but, year-to-date, was still up. March was down but it’s doing it’s job.
“A lot of those managers use long/short strategies, making money when they short a stock and it goes down in value. Some of their strategies are designed to make money when prices go down. It’s designed to have a hedge against market downturns.” The Hedged Strategies Fund is RF Bank & Trust’s smallest international fund with just $14m in assets under management
The Targeted Income Fund and International
Opportunities Fund have $57m and $47m, respectively, giving the trio of funds a collective $118m in investor assets under management. Besides Bahamians, Mr Slatter said investors also include expatriates and other Caribbean nationals able to participate in foreign currency investments.
He added that investor interest in all three remains solid despite the current economic and market turbulence, with the Targeted Income Fund not immune following the recent global bond market sell-off and yield surges - developments that likely forced Mr Trump into his tariff pause given the impact this was having for increased borrowing costs on the US’ multi-trillion dollar debt and the depreciating US dollar.
“They are very well-positioned to ride it out,” Mr Slatter told Tribune Business of the three funds.
“The Targeted Income Fund, we’re fully invested with strong income being generated from the positions. We’ve got around $4m in cash to deploy. That’s fine, very liquid, generating decent dividends and income streams with money on the sidelines to take advantage of opportunities.
“For the International Opportunities Fund, 40 percent of it has been put into liquid income positions which we can use to get back into the equities market when it is right. We have a lot of dry powder
activated our business continuity plan, and our team members are being temporarily relocated to work at our nearby store locations to ensure job security and minimise disruption to their lives.
“As a resilient team, we are already actively
to buy-in and add stocks when we feel it’s right. The Hedged Strategies Fund is doing what it’s supposed to do; minimising the downside during down markets.
“There’s still good interest in all the funds as far as subscriptions coming in, and all three are pretty well-positioned to deal with this uncertainty and chaos... Our US dollar funds are well-positioned to weather any downturn in the equities market. They have a lot of liquidity and cash on the sidelines to take advantage of opportunities as they present themselves.”
However, Mr Slatter warned that The Bahamas and the rest of the world economy are “not going to be immune from the battle going on between the two biggest economies in the world. We need to keep that in mind”. That is a reference to the ever-growing economic and geo-political rivalry between the US and China, both of whom have slapped triple-digit tariffs on each other’s imports of 145 percent and 125 percent, respectively.
Noting that the trillions of dollars in value wiped off global stocks following Mr Trump’s tariff unveiling will leave thousands of Americans feeling less wealthy, with their retirement investments much reduced, Mr Slatter said this was likely to be reflected in reduced tourism numbers for The Bahamas during the 2025 second half.
The threat of higher prices and lower demand among American consumers and businesses remains, despite Mr Trump’s pause until early July, along with
exploring the next steps, including plans to rebuild, and will keep the community informed as these efforts move forward. Our assets are fully insured, we have begun discussions with our partners, and we are confident that we will fully recover from this.”
the possibility of a US slowdown becoming a recession and even stagflation - higher unemployment and prices.
“I do expect the economy to slow,” Mr Slatter told Tribune Business of The Bahamas. “I wouldn’t be surprised if the Bahamian economy did fall into recession. Unfortunately, I don’t see what’s going on in the global trade arena working itself out in the short-term. I think we’ll be in this for a number of months, unfortunately.”
He advised investors to “be conservative” with their equities investments in the Bahamian market, and seek out companies with “stable cash flow” and “paying a decent dividend”. The RF Bank & Trust investments chief cited the likes of FOCOL Holdings, AML Foods and banks and insurers as examples, adding: “There are a lot of local equities in mature businesses that are able to weather downturns fairly well.
“With equities you need to be thinking medium and long-term. It’s disconcerting now, but look at opportunities down the road in five years’ time and the chance to get in at some attractive entry points.” On the international markets, Mr Slatter added that stock valuations have reduced to the point where there are now “buying opportunities” but he warned investors to be cautious and strategic in how they do this.
Gold and silver were also identified as attractive hedges against further market turmoil.
SMOKE rises from a fire yesterday at the Hyacith Staurt building. The fire threatened numerous businesses located at the property incuding Solomon’s, Cost Right and the new Ministry of Labour headquarters.
SPACE DEBRIS FROM THREE EXTRA OPERATORS RECOVERED
By FAY SIMMONS
THE Deputy Prime Minister yesterday said space debris from three other operators besides SpaceX was found in The Bahamas during clean-up following the March 6 explosion of the latter’s Starship 8 rocket.
Chester Cooper, also minister of tourism, investments and aviation, chose not to reveal the identity of the other three companies until “further communications directly through diplomatic channels”. He said the Government is still investigating the additional space debris
discovered during the recovery efforts.
“Additional debris has been recovered in our territory, linked not only to Space, but to three additional companies operating within the broader
aerospace and commercial launch industry. We are continually investigating these findings,” Mr Cooper said.
“The Office of the Attorney General and DEPP (Department of Environmental Planning and Protection) are reviewing to ensure compliance with international outer space treaties and convention. These discoveries are continuously under review. We are working to determine definitively their origin and responsibility in each case.”
Mr Cooper added that work must be done to ensure increasing space activity does not adversely affect safety on the ground in The Bahamas. “As commercial space technology and activities evolve, the
‘Mediocre’ Bahamasair service must improve for baggage fees
By ANNELIA NIXON Tribune Business Reporter
DESPITE rising baggage fees, Bahamians yesterday pledged to remain loyal to the national flag carrier while asserting that it is now simply doing what other airlines have been doing for years.
However, some argued that the new and increased baggage rates should come with better service, including punctuality, enhanced customer service and more flight benefits.
“I would like to see them improve on the technology,” Albrea Pennerman said. “Let’s get up-to-date. Let’s get some Wi-Fi in the air. Let’s get some peanuts, some chips, light snacks, and let’s definitely be on time. I wouldn’t go against my flag carrier for riches and gold, but at some point
we can’t keep increasing prices for mediocre service.
“That makes no sense to me. Any time I’m flying Bahamasair, I would never plan to catch a connecting flight because I already know in my head, chances are I’m going to be late. That don’t even make sense. But they don’t take chances with your life. I love the airline. They are still my airline of choice. They will always be my first choice, but we have to get it together.
“I would say I travel minimum, two to three times a year. You don’t mind paying the fees if it makes sense. Let me go on to say that. Let’s say to go Orlando, I would pay, let’s say maybe between $320 and $315 on Jet Blue. I don’t mind paying that,” Pennerman added.
“Even maybe $360. I’m open to that. You have things like Wi-Fi on the airplane. If it’s cold and you want a blanket, you can get
a blanket. They have light snacks. So my thing is, if this is the route that Bahamasair wants to take, they need to follow suit.”
Kieasha Poitier, another frequent Bahamasair flyer, said the airline might lose its edge over rivals with these new prices. “I’m on the fence because, while I understand that it may be necessary, I feel like it may hurt them a bit because that was one of the perks,” Ms Poitier said of the baggage fees.
“We’re talking international. We like to go shopping. I don’t really travel domestic with a lot of bags anyway, so I never even knew that it was still free for the first bag domestic. But I normally travel Bahamasair when I’m going to Fort Lauderdale, Orlando.
“While a lot of people say they aren’t flying Bahamasair no more, give me my banana air, because I know you’re going to arrive safe.
industry holds great promise, but will it will always require us to provide careful scrutiny, protect our national interest,” he said.
“Maximising the opportunities, minimising the risk will require a comprehensive strategy, including diplomatic agreements, regulatory enforcement, scientific partnerships and consistent legal reviews.”
Dr Rhianna Neely-Murphy, DEPP’s director, said the debris collected on Ragged Island and Crooked Island was mainly from the heat shields of the Starship 8 rocket but debris found on Cat Island, Abaco and Eleuthera were not linked to the SpaceX asset.
“To my understanding, the modelling and the information received by
DEPP, any of the heavy parts would not have been dropped in Bahamian waters, and what we collected so far were the heat shields that were washed ashore, predominantly with seaweed as the tides came in. We have not received any recent reports of any more of the debris associated with that, or what we think is associated with that, on those two islands,” said Dr Neely-Murphy.
“The Government has received reports of space debris on Cat Island, Abaco and Eleuthera and, at this time, there’s no evidence that connects Space X to any of those debris that have been found on those other islands.”
Dr Neely-Murphy confirmed that none of the
That’s key. That’s paramount. Not only that, the prices are good. And then, of course, they still have the cheapest bag rates. So that’s what was leading.”
With the view that Bahamians will feel the pinch of higher baggage prices more than foreign travellers will, Michael Dillon, owner of Abaco Yacht and Charter Services, said tourists are used to paying baggage fees.
He added: “If you look at it from another angle, Bahamasair is just now catching up to everybody else in the world. They’ve been charging bag fees forever. So from that vantage point none of my customers are honestly looking
for a flight on Bahamasair. They’re just looking for a plane to get them to Abaco.
“So, at the end of the day, adding the bag fees on top of the flights, the problem with that, in my opinion, is going to be more adversely affecting all of us locals and not so much the tourists, because the tourists are already used to paying the baggage fees with other airlines. So Bahamasair is just catching up.
“They’re subsidised by taxpayers anyway. Last year, what were they? $20m upside down? So you took that out of the taxpayer, and now you want to hit them for baggage fees. The baggage fees are going to hurt locals more than it’s
space debris recovered was hazardous, and some parts appear to have been in Bahamian waters since 2012.
“None of the debris reported thus far has been observed or confirmed to be hazardous, and some of it appears to have been in the ocean for quite some time. One estimation is that the debris washed up on Cat Island has been in the ocean since 2012,” said Dr Neely-Murphy.
“We have made the adjustments, and we have reported these things to the United Nations, and all approvals so far have been given for the export of the space debris for all islands except Eleuthera, which is still a work in progress.”
going to hurt tourists. The people that are going to be paying that bill are going to be locals,” Mr Dillon said.
“All of us that are going to be travelling from Family Island to Family Island, in and out of Nassau, those are the people that are going to be affected the most. The tourists don’t really care. They’re used to paying bag fees.
“The people it’s going to hurt the most are people who are going to be flying from Nassau to Long Island, Cat Island, San Salvador, Acklins, Abaco, Grand Bahama. Those are all the people that are going to suffer. They’re going to be they’re the ones paying the bill.”
Taking effect as of yesterday, Bahamasair’s international baggage fees jumped with the first checked bag at $35, the second at $55, the third at $95 and the fourth or more at $125 each. Domestic travellers still benefit from a free first checked bag, with every other bag following the international rates, beginning at $55.
CHESTER COOPER
PI Crown Land fight receives final Privy Council go-ahead
FROM PAGE B1
He also found that the then-Minnis administration did not sign the agreement with Mr Smith because it “determined that it had found a better deal”namely Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines’ Royal Beach Club project, which itself wanted to lease three of the same acres sought by the Bahamian entrepreneur.
However, Sir Michael’s dissenting verdict did not prove decisive, as his two fellow justices on the threestrong Court of Appeal panel rendered the majority decision in favour of the Government by finding the reverse - that no valid, legally binding lease agreement was in place. This is the decision Mr Smith has now got permission to challenge at the Privy Council level.
Royal Caribbean subsequently reduced its Paradise Island Crown Land needs from seven acres to four, dropping the three-acre parcel disputed by Mr Smith in a bid to extricate itself from the latter’s legal battle with the Government. However, the Bahamian entrepreneur said there remain several unanswered questions regarding the cruise line’s move.
For he again challenged yesterday whether Royal Caribbean is still operating
from the original seven-acre lease agreed by the Government, which included his disputed three-acre parcel, or is now using an amended or new lease. While the cruise line has indicated that it is indeed working from a new lease and reduced parcel, Mr Smith said he has yet to see sufficient documentary proof such as Registry of Records filings. “No details have been provided. The facts of the new deal have not been released,” he argued. “I think my land may still be intertwined with their seven-acre lease, and they have not published anything to say anything different.”
Noting that the “final leave” granted by the Privy Council emerged on April 8, almost 14 years after he initially began pursuing his ambitions to transform the western tip of Paradise Island into a destination for both Bahamians and tourists on April 12, 2011, he noted the Prime Minister’s pledge at Monday’s Cotton Bay ground-breaking that “the days of Bahamians being observers to our own development are over”.
“The days of Bahamians being observers are over... What does he call what’s going on on Paradise Island,” Mr Smith told Tribune Business of his predicament. Philip Davis
BPL ‘came to their senses’ by ditching $600k payout appeal FROM PAGE B1
executive with the Kikivarakis & Co accounting firm, voicing misgivings about the consequences of doing so given the absence of a termination ‘without cause’ clause in his contract.
Mr Rollins was appointed as BPL’s deputy chairman on July 1, 2017, following the Minnis administration’s election victory that year. He resigned from the Board on August 14, 2018, butprior to that - had signed a three-year employment contract on July 20 of that year to become BPL’s executive director with responsibility for overseeing “large technical projects”.
Sir Ian, in his verdict, noted that “in reality” BPL was ‘informed’ of Mr Rollins’ appointment by Mr Bannister, then-deputy prime minister and minister of works with responsibility for BPL, at a July 4, 2018, Board meeting. The job description for the post was sent to BPL on July
13, 2018, by the acting permanent secretary at the Ministry of Works. Besides the $180,000 base salary, the three-year contract gave Mr Rollins an annual gratuity equal to 15 percent of salary; a BPL vehicle; and medical insurance. He was required to give three months’ notice if he intended to resign, but the contract only permitted BPL’s Board to terminate him “for cause” and provide the reasons for doing so to the minister. Mr Rollins’ contract was renewed for a second threeyear term beginning on July 1, 2021, which was some two-and-a-half months before the September general election. “Bannister had requested that Rollins’ contract be renewed for three years,” Sir Ian wrote in his verdict. The contract’s terms and conditions were the same as the first version, although the Chief Justice wrote: “It had been proposed by Bannister that, on the renewal of
N O T I C E
REINBO ENTERPRISES LTD. (In Voluntary Liquidation)
Notice is hereby given that the above-named Company is in dissolution, commencing on the 14th day of April, 2025. Articles of Dissolution have been duly registered by the Registrar. The liquidator is (Amicorp Bahamas Management Limited, whose address is Bahamas Financial Centre, 3rd Floor, Shirley & Charlotte Street, P.O. Box N-4865, Nassau, Bahamas).
Dated this 15th day of April 2025.
(AMICORP BAHAMAS MANAGEMENT LIMITED) LIQUIDATOR
KC, speaking in the House of Assembly, has told Mr Smith to reapply for his project after losing the initial Supreme Court case while asserting that he did not have a valid, legallybinding Crown Land lease for his two and three-acre parcels.
“They told me a year ago to reapply,” he recalled. “I reaffirmed my position [that the lease and deal were valid] and got no response. I reaffirmed details of what the project was and provided proof of financing. I’ve shown the Government on four occasions over the last 14 years, every time they’ve requested proof of financing, they’ve provided it.
“The last time, I went with 250 percent more than the money I needed. I walked in with $7m for what was originally a $2m project.” Mr Smith, in a subsequent statement, thanked his attorneys Damian Gomez KC and Sidney Cambridge.
“Paradise Island Lighthouse and Beach Club Company is simply trying to bring to fruition a low impact, sustainable, cultural and historical hub for Bahamians and our guests to enjoy in a right-sized venue. Our mission has lead with ‘is this best for The Bahamas? and is this best for Bahamians?’, and
Rollins’ contract, his annual remuneration ought to be increased from $180,000 to $189,000 and that he should receive annual increments of 4 percent per annum over the life of the contract, but these increases were rejected by BPL’s Board.”
The Davis administration’s election to office resulted in the appointment of a new BPL Board chaired by Mr Rolle, a realtor and the Exuma Chamber of Commerce’s president. Mr Rollins testified that he only became aware his job was in danger when he went to see Mr Rolle in December 2021 over the renewal of Wartsila’s expiring contract to operate/maintain BPL’s Station A generation plant at Clifton Pier.
“During the course of that conversation, chairman Rolle informed me that ‘certain people in Cabinet were asking for your head and CEO Heastie’s head because, you know, you are Desmond’s boy’,” he alleged.
“Mr Rolle went on to say to me: ‘I need you to let me know what you are willing to accept because if it goes to court it will take a long time
all aspects have passed that litmus test,” he argued.
“Paradise Island Lighthouse & Beach Club Company has been ready since day one to fully restore the Paradise ‘Hog’ Island Lighthouse, built in 1817, back to its original glory at no cost to the Bahamian people, provide access to Bahamian Crown Land and access to our own beaches.”
Mr Smith, in his Privy Council grounds of appeal, is asserting that the real issue is whether a January 7, 2020, letter from Richard Hardy, then-acting director of the Department of Lands and Surveys, which contained the lease, “evidenced a binding agreement”.
He added that the Court of Appeal majority “asked themselves the wrong question” by focusing on whether the lease was “a valid agreement” in the absence of the signature of Dr Hubert Minnis, then minister responsible for Crown Lands. “The real question was whether the essential terms of an agreement for lease were present,” Mr Smith’s filings added.
“Had the learned justices of appeal not so misdirected themselves, they would have held, as Sir Michael Barnett did, that all the essential terms of an agreement for lease were present, there was nothing further
to resolve. Think about it and get back to me because we are not prepared to pay the balance of your contract out’. I was taken aback by this last comment, and saddened, given the effort and industry that I had put into BPL these past several years.”
Mr Rolle, though, vehemently denied saying what was asserted by Mr Rollins. BPL’s new Board, at its first meeting on Thursday, January 20, 2022, decided to terminate Mr Rollins’ contract with effect from the following day by providing him with three months’ pay in lieu of notice.
He was duly summoned to a meeting with Daniel Ferguson, BPL’s deputy chairman, who presented him with a $67,077 cheque and termination letter that he refused to accept or sign.
After analysing all the evidence, Sir Ian found both Mr Rollins’ contracts “were genuine fixed-term contracts”. As a result, he rejected BPL’s argument that it was “the spirit and intent” of the two sides that Mr Rollins’ employment could be terminated by three months’ notice.
N O T I C E
THORNHILL MANAGEMENT LTD. (In Voluntary Liquidation)
Notice is hereby given that the above-named Company is in dissolution, commencing on the 14th day of April, 2025. Articles of Dissolution have been duly registered by the Registrar. The liquidator is (Amicorp Bahamas Management Limited, whose address is Bahamas Financial Centre, 3rd Floor, Shirley & Charlotte Street, P.O. Box N-4865, Nassau, Bahamas).
Dated this 15th day of April 2025.
(AMICORP BAHAMAS MANAGEMENT LIMITED) LIQUIDATOR
to be negotiated or agreed, and that all that remained was for the respondent [the Attorney General and the Government] to sign and seal the lease as per the agreement.”
Appeal justice Gregory Smith, in the majority Court of Appeal verdict, sent Mr Smith and his company a letter headlined “approval for Crown Land lease”. This covered a two and three-acre parcel, respectively, with the first adjacent to the lighthouse at Paradise Island’s western end and the other for the ‘beach break’ destination.
The letter contained instructions on how the attached lease documents were to be signed, dated, sealed and notarised, then returned to the Department of Lands and Surveys. Once the minister responsible for Crown Lands, who was then Dr Minnis, signed a copy of the lease was to be returned to Mr Smith.
The Bahamian entrepreneur signed the lease forwarded by Mr Hardy, and returned it to the Government for execution two days later on January 9, 2020. Dr Minnis, though, did not sign the lease on the Government’s behalf as it emerged that Royal Caribbean had rival designs on the three-acre Crown Land parcel for its own Royal Beach Club project.
And, in the absence of any evidence to show he would have been “terminated for cause”, the Chief Justice found Mr Rollins was entitled to all the compensation he was seeking and duly awarded him a total $592,952 plus interest at 2 percent to run from his January 21, 2022, termination. Interest amounts to $11,859 per annum, and Sir Ian said he was awarding that sum because BPL had knowingly failed to provide full compensation despite taking legal advice and the warning from Ms Simms. And, in contrast, it had paid the full contractual sum due to the previous BPL executive director, Deepak Bhatnagar, when he was terminated.
However, Sir Ian rejected the unfair dismissal claim, as he “placed greater weight on the inherent improbability that an experienced businessman would tell a senior executive what it is alleged was said” in the case of Mr Rolle’s comments to Mr Rollins. Also finding an absence of “wider evidential support” to show the
Sir Michael, though, disagreed and said he would have ordered “specific performance of the lease” by the Government. Describing Mr Hardy’s letter as being of “major importance”, the Court of Appeal president said the letter was headlined “approval for Crown lease” and did not say or suggest there were any matters left to be agreed between the parties.
“In my judgment, the critical question in this appeal is whether the letter of January 2020 evidenced a binding agreement between the appellant and the minister for the lease of five acres of land on Paradise Island,” Sir Michael wrote. “The Chief Justice formed the view that there was no concluded agreement.
“It is difficult to see how it can be said that there was no concluded agreement. The lease sent on January 7, 2020, had been prepared by the respondent’s [Attorney General’s] lawyers on the respondent’s instructions. There was nothing further to be negotiated and agreed....
“The document reflecting the terms of the agreement was sent by the respondent to the appellant for signature. All that was left was for the respondent to sign and seal the lease. He did not do so because the Government determined that it had found a better deal.”
termination was politically motivated, the Chief Justice concluded: “There is no compelling evidence that the Board of BPL allowed the Government to dictate the implementation of a discriminatory practice of removing key management employees who were affiliated with the FNM, which is a very serious allegation.
“The evidence adduced by Rollins does not bear out that there was a ‘witch hunt’ at BPL for FNM-appointed executive management (whomever that set of people may consist of). There is, in the same way, no compelling evidence that the Board failed to act independently in the exercise of their fiduciary duties to BPL and failed to consider whether Rollins’ termination was in the best interests of BPL.
“There is also no compelling evidence that Rollins was subjected to humiliation or degradation because of his perceived political affiliation with the FNM. Rollins’ evidence of humiliation and degradation was gravely undermined during cross-examination.”
NOTICE
SA International Inc.
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to section 138 (8) of the International Business Companies Act 2000 the dissolution of SA International Inc. has been completed and the company has been struck from the Register on the 12th day of February 2025.
DELCO INVESTMENTS LIMITED Liquidator
Youen Company Limited
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to section 138 (8) of the International Business Companies Act 2000 the dissolution of Youen Company Limited, has been completed and the company has been struck from the Register on the 12th day of February 2025. Baird One Limited
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to section 138 (8) of the International Business Companies Act 2000 the dissolution of FOX HILL CREEK PROPERTIES LTD., has been completed and the company has been struck from the Register on the 28th day of March 2025.
Baird One Limited Liquidator
‘Legendary’ condo fight ‘poor reflection on judicial system’
behalf. He instead upheld the claims of the earlier elected Board, led by attorney Maurice Glinton KC.
“This is an application for summary judgment and consequential orders arising from two Supreme Court actions filed as far back as 2013. Those actions began a legal dispute over the management of a condominium complex in Freeport between rival Boards that would be legendary but for the disastrous consequences it has wrought,” Justice Klein wrote.
“There has been extensive litigation between the parties since the institution of the actions in 2013, in the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal, as well as an attempt to appeal to the Privy Council. However, this litigation did not lead to a disposition of the outstanding issues in the 2013 actions. It is regrettable, and a poor reflection of our judicial system, that it just now falls to me in 2025 to cut the Gordian knot of this protracted litigation.”
Justice Klein, in a separate ruling involving the Lucayan Towers South complex in March 2025, said the long-running battle for control had “financially crippled” its management and the unit owners’ association “and deeply divided its membership”. This had resulted in a buildup of debts and unpaid bills, including more than $400,000 owed to Grand Bahama Utility Company for water supplied to the complex.
Lucayan Towers South has also been fighting to prevent the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA), in its capacity as Freeport’s building regulator, from revoking its occupancy certificate over alleged safety concerns and a failure to make repairs that would cure building code violations. The condo complex last year obtained a Supreme Court injunction to prevent the GBPA from following through on its threatened action.
Justice Klein, meanwhile, noting that his April 11 verdict is the sixth ruling he has been required to make on the Lucayan Towers South dispute, noted that the two rival Boards had initiated separate legal actions - one in Nassau, the other in Freeport - over which is the “properly constituted Board of Directors of the Lucayan Towers South Condominium Association”.
The Nassau action was initiated by the Board headed by Mr Glinton, while the Freeport case was launched by Mr Prudden’s Board. The latter, which also included Chris Rolle, Julie Glover, Yasmin Popescu and Linda CarollStrachan, together with “some non-unit owners”, held the Extraordinary Meeting on January 9, 2013, at which they “purported to have been elected” to replace Mr Glinton’s Board that was elected in 2005.
Mr Prudden’s Board, after hiring Tiffany Dennison of Dennison & Company as its attorney, swiftly proceeded to send “notices to unit owners,
excluding the 2005 directors, declaring themselves the new Board of Directors of the body corporate; instructing the unit owners not to make their maintenance assessment payments to the 2005 directors; or to deposit such payments to the body corporate’s bank account held at CIBC FirstCaribbean International Bank to which the 2005 directors were signatories.
“The unit owners were instructed instead to make such payments to the Prudden group through Ms Dennison to be held in her firm’s escrow account,” Justice Klein added. “Between January 14, 2013, and April 19, 2013, the Prudden Group attempted on several occasions to gain access to the CIBC account by way of a series of threatening letters written by attorney Dennison and sent on her firm’s letterhead to CIBC.
“In or about April 2013, the 2005 directors (Mr Glinton’s Board) became aware of the Prudden Group’s communications to the unit owners instructing them to divert their maintenance payments from the body corporate to themselves and/or attorney Dennison, as well as their efforts to gain access to the CIBC account.”
The Prudden Board initiated legal action on May 28, 2013, seeking Supreme Court declarations that they had been validly elected at the Extraordinary Meeting; that the rival Board led by Mr Glinton was to “cease and desist from interference” with the management of Lucayan Towers South; and that the former Board
was to hand over control of all bank accounts and funds as well as give an accounting for maintenance fees paid.
Mr Glinton, in subsequent legal filings, alleged that he heard from Chris Rolle - who stepped away from the dispute and associated events - “that the Prudden group had been using money paid to them by unit owners as intended maintenance fees to pay the fees charged by attorney Dennison for her legal services.
“Mr Rolle also informed Mr Glinton that he intended to resign because of his objection to the diverted funds being used for that purpose, thereby depleting the body corporate’s funds. Shortly afterwards, he did resign,” Justice Klein recalled.
The Prudden Board then attempted to “destroy or remove” notices posted by Mr Glinton’s Board, advertising that the Association’s outstanding financial statements had been completed and it would hold an annual general meeting (AGM) for unit owners on January 16, 2014. The former countered by advertising it would hold its own AGM on January 12, 2014.
Prior to those dates, Mr Glinton’s Board launched their own legal action in Nassau on December 24, 2013, seeking Supreme Court declarations that they were Lucayan Towers South’s rightful Board; that the monies paid to the rival Board and Ms Dennison were its own and should be handed over; and a variety of damages.
SPACE X LANDINGS HALTED FOR ENVIRONMENTAL STUDY
reviewed and a public consultation is arranged.
“Space X is aware that no other re-entry exercises will be considered for DEEP’s clearance until the post-launch report has been reviewed by the DEPP, and that the previously submitted documents are updated to reflect any new intervention and lessons learned, and that the public consultation is conducted for Bahamians and concerned residents,” said Dr Neely-Murphy.
“We would have required environmental documents be submitted to the Department of Environmental Planning and Protection prior to the launch. Now the post -launch report will have to indicate that everything that we expected pre-launch has happened in the post-launch and, moving forward, any lessons learned that we need to employ.”
Kiko Dontchev, vicepresident of launch at Space X, said the preliminary findings of the post-launch report reveal that there was no significant
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that MAUDELIS VINCENT of #22 Young Street, New Providence, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/ naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 16th day of April, 2025 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.
16470, Nassau, The Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/ naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/ naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 9th day of April, 2025 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.
Sir Michael Barnett, the then-chief justice, ordered on February 21, 2014, that an AGM be held on March 28, 2014; that the Prudden-led Board provide an accounting of the monies paid to it by unit owners; and the accounts containing these funds be frozen with no withdrawals unless Mr Glinton gave permission. Ellison Delva, an accountant, provided the ordered financial information. “Of particular note within the Delva accounts was the Prudden Group’s expenditures from the diverted funds in the amount of $39,881.59 and $30,764.56 to Dennison & Company and Callenders & Company, respectively, for their personal legal representation, totaling $70,646.15 during the period from April 2013 to February 2014,” Justice Klein wrote/
“The Delva affidavit also revealed that on 30 June, 2013, the Prudden group had caused a bank account to be opened at Bank of The Bahamas in the name of ‘Lucayan Towers South Condominium’ into which they had deposited the balance of the diverted funds, and had encouraged other unit owners to pay their maintenance assessments into that account.”
The AGM ordered by Sir Michael, though, triggered further disputes. Mr Glinton, as chair, determined that insufficient unit owners were present and adjourned the meeting. However, the Prudden Board’s members and other unit owners present continued the AGM and elected another Board
change in ambient environmental conditions after the landing.
“What we have found in the preliminary report is that there was no significant difference in the ambient environmental conditions before and after the landing,” he said. “During the landing, there was a temporary increase in sound, as you would expect, but there was no observations of marine life that were different before or after the landing.
“Water quality results appeared stable before and after the landing, and many of the birds seen during the pre-launch were present in the same general areas during the post-launch. Our assessment is that there was no impact on the land.”
Mr Dontchev said Space X has seen the feedback from environmentalists and understands that a public consultation is necessary so persons can voice their concerns.
“We heard the feedback from the environmentalists, which is exactly why we are going to go do an EIA, and no landings will happen until we’re complete with
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that COLSIN IVON of Ragged Island Street, Cordeaux Avenue, Nassau, The Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/ naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 9th day of April, 2025 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that ONAL DAWSON of Abaco, The Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/ naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 16th day of April, 2025 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.
of Directors. A week later, Mr Glinton reconvened the AGM and elected yet another Board of Directors.
This sparked multiple legal actions, including appeals and counter-appeals, with the Court of Appeal ruling on September 4, 2017, that Mr Glinton’s Board had been elected on April 11, 2014. The claim before Justice Klein, launched by Mr Glinton’s Board on April 3, 2018, sought “final judgment” over the $112,000 allegedly received by the rival Board and that this be handed over to them.
The judge, noting the “bad blood” between the two competing Boards, said that as a result of the Court of Appeal’s 2017 decision “it has already been decided by the Supreme Court ,and affirmed by the Court of Appeal, that the Freeport action was stillborn, as the Prudden Group was not the legitimate Board and was therefore not legally competent to institute any claims”.
And, finding that the issues raised in the Glinton Board’s Nassau action “remained very much alive”, he ruled that the Prudden Board must repay $112,100 that was used to cover its legal fees and expenses. Besides the $70,646 previously identified as paid to Ms Dennison and Callenders & Co, a further accounting revealed that another $41,453 was paid to a combination of Ms Dennison and the Tynes & Tynes law firm.
that process. That process will also include a public comment period. So folks that have a say on the landings will have a chance,” said Mr Dontchev. He added that the EIA is expected to be completed by the end of summer 2025, and the delay will not interfere with Space X’s scheduled launches. “We hope to be completed by
the end of the summer, at which point we can restart,” said Mr Dontchev.
“It will not affect our cadence, but it will affect some of the trajectories we fly. We’re working to make that impact as minimal as possible. And we want to support The Bahamas and do the right thing, so we will figure out how to work through them.”
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that MYJACQUES RODNEY of #52A Hutchinson Street, New Providence, The Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/ naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 16th day of April, 2025 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that SELIDIEU ALLY of Peach Street, Nassau, The Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 9th day of April, 2025 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that ALICIA ANN TRICIA COURTNEY of Sears Hill, Nassau, The Bahamas, applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration/Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 16th day of April, 2025 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.
TRUMP EXEMPTS NEARLY 70 COAL PLANTS FROM BIDENERA RULE ON MERCURY AND OTHER TOXIC AIR POLLUTION
By MATTHEW DALY Associated Press
THE Trump administration has granted nearly 70 coal-fired power plants a two-year exemption from federal requirements to reduce emissions of toxic chemicals such as mercury, arsenic and benzene.
A list quietly posted as of Tuesday on the Environmental Protection Agency's website lists 47 power providers — which operate at least 66 coalfired plants — that are receiving exemptions from the Biden-era rules under the Clean Air Act, including a regulation limiting air pollution from mercury and other toxins. The actions follow an executive order last week by President Donald Trump aimed at boosting the struggling coal industry, a reliable but polluting energy source that's long been in decline.
Among plants receiving exemptions is the Colstrip Generating Station, a massive power plant in Colstrip,
Montana, that emits more toxic air pollutants such as lead and arsenic than any other U.S. facility of its kind, according to the EPA.
Other plants with exemptions include Coal Creek Station, a large power plant in North Dakota that is among the nation's top producers of mercury emissions, and the Oak Grove plant in Texas, another large polluter.
The exempted plants are owned by some of the nation's largest power companies, including Talen Energy, Dominion Energy, NRG Energy and Southern Co.
The exemptions also apply to four plants operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority, the nation's largest public utility.
The EPA said in a statement Tuesday that the presidential exemptions "will bolster coal-fired electricity generation, ensuring that our nation's grid is reliable, that electricity is affordable for
the American people, and that EPA is helping to promote our nation's energy security."
Michelle Bloodworth, president of a lobbying group for coal-fired plants, said Trump recognizes that the nation's coal fleet is "essential to maintaining a healthy and secure electricity supply – the backbone of our economy."
Rules imposed under former President Joe Biden "were inconsistent with the Clean Air Act and based on an improper analysis of data," she said.
The mercury rule, finalized last year, could have contributed to the premature retirement of dozens of coal units, Bloodworth said, adding that the plants are needed to support reliability of the electric grid.
Environmentalists called the exemptions — which require a presidential finding that technology required to meet the new rules is not widely available and that continued activity of the plants advances
national security — a dereliction of duty by Trump and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin. "These passes to pollute carve a ragged hole through the heart of federal protections for the air we breathe," said Maya Golden-Krasner, a senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, an environmental group. "To suggest that it's a matter of national security to force people from Montana to Alabama to inhale more neurotoxins is offensive. This is what it looks like to put polluter profits ahead of the wellbeing of Americans and the planet."
Environmental groups and public health advocates
have denounced the administration's plan to grant exemptions, which they say could allow hundreds of companies to evade laws meant to protect the environment and public health.
Critics call the new email address set up by the EPA to request the exemptions a "polluters' portal."
Exemptions can be given for nine EPA rules, including limits on mercury, ethylene oxide and other hazardous air pollutants. Mercury exposure can cause brain damage, especially in children, and birth defects can occur after exposure in a mother's womb.
Last week, in a series of executive orders, Trump
used his emergency authority to allow some older coal-fired power plants set for retirement to keep producing electricity to meet rising U.S. power demand amid growth in data centers, artificial intelligence and electric cars. Trump also directed federal agencies to identify coal resources on federal lands, lift barriers to coal mining and prioritize coal leasing on U.S. lands.
Trump, a Republican, has long promised to boost what he calls "beautiful" coal to fire power plants and for other uses.
DOZENS OF STUDENT PILOTS SUE UNITED AIRLINES AND ITS FLIGHT SCHOOL OVER FRAUD ALLEGATIONS
By RIO YAMAT Associated Press
DOZENS of former student pilots who say they racked up tens of thousands of dollars in debt for tuition are suing United Airlines and its flight school in the Arizona desert, saying it didn't have enough teachers or aircraft to properly train and graduate its students.
The federal lawsuit accuses United and the school, United Aviate Academy, of falsely promoting a well-equipped, intensive training program that would put students on a path to becoming commercial pilots after a year.
In reality, the students said in an amended complaint filed last week, their flight time was limited due to the staffing shortages and frequent staff turnover. In some cases, students were teaching other students, according to the lawsuit. Some of the students said they ultimately left the program when it became clear they would not finish training after a year. But many of them alleged in the lawsuit that they were wrongly expelled from the school for "taking too long to advance" through the program. Around the time of the pandemic, United purchased the pilot school in the Phoenix suburb of Goodyear to address a critical problem facing the industry: not enough pilots. Airlines have complained about the shortage for years, but they made it worse during the COVID-19 outbreak by encouraging pilots to take early retirement when air travel collapsed in 2020.
In a statement, Chicago-based United said it couldn't comment on specific allegations, citing the ongoing lawsuit, but it defended its pilot school.
"We have the highest confidence in the rigorous curriculum and flight training program provided at United Aviate Academy and are proud of the school's hundreds of graduates," the statement said.
The lawsuit claims the school had an enrollment cap of 325 students "to ensure sufficient resources." Instead, according to the complaint, there were more than 380 students enrolled in the program in March 2024.
Within months, the school's accrediting body issued a warning letter to the flight school, in part because of its enrollment numbers, according to the lawsuit. Around this time, the lawsuit claims that United Aviate Academy began expelling students from the program "in order to comply with the enrollment cap." By August of that year, the school was placed on probation by the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges,
according to the lawsuit. The school voluntarily withdrew its accreditation in January.
United told The Associated Press that it "is exploring an alternative accreditation that better meets the needs of the flight school." Richard Levy, a retired captain who flew for a major international airline for 41 years and who now works as a flight instructor in Texas, said a one-year program is in line with industry training standards. He said students who want to fly commercial jets will typically train for about a year for certain certifications, then go on to work for a regional airline and log additional flying time — up to 1,500 hours — before they can fly for a major airline.
What's important, Levy said, is that students are flying frequently and following a structured, uniform program during their training.
But the lawsuit says that at one point there were roughly 20 aircraft for the hundreds of students enrolled in United's flight school. One student said he was able to fly just once or twice over several months and was repeatedly reassigned instructors. He was eventually expelled for "taking too long to advance" through his courses, the lawsuit alleges.
Another expelled student said she had a different instructor during each of her first four flights. During her eighth flight, she said, her instructor was a fellow student of the program.
"It was students teaching students," the lawsuit says. It also alleges that students were sometimes evaluated by instructors who were not pilots themselves.
Levy said he's "never heard of" non-pilots evaluating student pilots.
Most of the students suing said they took out loans with the expectation that they were attending a oneyear program that would lead to "gainful employment." Many of them had to relocate to Arizona to attend the program.
One student sold his home, according to the lawsuit. Another left his job of 21 years to "pursue his dream" of becoming a pilot while his husband stayed behind at their home in Texas.
The lawsuit was filed in federal court in Phoenix on behalf of 29 former students from states across the country, including Florida, Texas, California, Colorado, Nevada and Connecticut.
THE COLSTRIP Steam Electric Station in Colstrip, Mont., is photographed Sept. 30, 2014.
Photo:Matthew Brown/AP
A UNITED Aviate Academy student pilot takes off from Goodyear Airport, Oct. 28, 2022, in Goodyear, Ariz.
Photo:Matt York/AP
Democrats dislike the ‘chaos’ of Trump’s trade war but are OK with some tariffs
By JOSH BOAK and MATT BROWN Associated Press
DEMOCRATS are quick to say that President Donald Trump's tariffs are horrible, awful, terrible.
But Democrats are also stressing that they are not inherently anti-tariff.
What Trump's political opponents say they really dislike is the "chaos" he has unleashed.
"Tariffs are an important tool in our economic toolbox," said Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass. "Trump is creating chaos, and that chaos undercuts our economy and our families, both in the short term and the long term. ... He's just created a worldwide hurricane, and that's not good for anyone."
Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., said Democrats have a consensus around "a unified concept, which is targeted tariffs can work, across the board tariffs are bad."
"The right targeting is in the eye of the beholder, but nobody on our side thinks zero tariffs ever," Kaine said.
The Democrats' message is meant to convey that they are reasonable, focused on
capable governance and attuned to financial market distress. It's a pitch toward swing voters who would like to see more manufacturing yet are uncomfortable with the consequences of Trump's approach to tariffs. The risk is that it also is a nuanced argument at a time when pithy critiques travel faster and spread wider on social media than do measured policy analyses.
To the Trump White House, that message is nothing but hypocrisy.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Tuesday noted that Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., who would later become House speaker, was warning in June 1996 that trade with China meant higher trade deficits and job losses.
"It is about nothing less than our economic future, our national security and our democratic principles," said Pelosi before the House voted to not overturn then Democratic President Bill Clinton's decision to extend most-favored-nation trade status for China for another year. The Trump administration views those remarks as evidence that Democrats actually back what Trump
is doing, despite their stated opposition.
"Everyone in Washington, whether they want to admit it or not, knows that this president is right when it comes to tariffs and when it comes to trade," Leavitt told reporters. "Nancy Pelosi can thank President Trump today."
Not all Democrats have threaded the needle cleanly.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer gave a speech in Washington on Wednesday calling for tariffs to be used like a "scalpel." Hours later,
she was in the Oval Office with Trump — in a moment caught on video — as the president signed directives for the Justice Department to investigate two of his public critics and gave noncommittal musings on tariff negotiations.
Whitmer's office later said in a statement that she was "surprised" that she was brought in for the event after a meeting with Trump and that "her presence is not an endorsement of the actions taken or statements made at that event."
Trump this month unilaterally imposed sweeping tariffs on China, the European Union, Mexico, Canada, Japan and South Korea, among dozens of other nations.
But on Wednesday, he suspended most of the tariffs for 90 days while applying a baseline import tax of 10% to most nations, a 145% tariff on Chinese goods and a tariff of as much as 25% on Mexico and Canada.
There are also tariffs on autos, steel and aluminum, with more planned on specific products.
The tariffs are expected to generate hundreds of billions of dollars annually in new revenues, but an average U.S. household could see disposable income fall by more than $4,000 as importers and companies pass along the costs of the levies.
Interest rates on the U.S. debt are rising as investors worry about the soundness of Trump's policies. Major stock indexes are down and consumer sentiment is at its second lowest level in the history of the University of Michigan survey.
Some Democrats are trying to keep the focus on
their constituents, resurrecting talking points from Trump's tariff battles during his first term.
"Farmers, in particular, who were hit very hard by Trump's last trade wars, are terrified that this may be existential to their businesses," said Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis. "These are mostly small and mediumsized family farms. Their input costs are going to go up and their export markets are going to close down."
Rep. Gwen Moore, D-Wis., said the tariffs would be "catastrophic" for urban and rural communities alike in her state. But Moore added that Democrats should still advocate for raising labor and product standards to keep American goods and services competitive in global markets.
"I know that many of our autoworkers were lured into voting for Donald Trump because they thought perhaps he was going to give them some relief," said Moore. "But the prices of cars are going to go up because the component parts are everywhere. There's no strategy for it."
MARINE FORECAST
SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN, D-Mass., speaks during a confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, March 14, 2025.
