The indebted airlines are being encouraged to restructure their debts at a favourable 7% interest rate instead of the prevailing rates of btw 17-20%. The govt pays the difference directly to the banks. The airlines benefit by having reduced interest payments ,freeing capital for other things e.g salaries.The banks benefit by having huge injection of capital into the system stabilizing some banks who are strained as a result of over exposure to indebted airlines
Gander707 you are very correct, infact only a certain percentage of the 500billion is available to the airlines, and as you rightly wrote,the money is meant to restructure existing debts.They are not getting any money except a leeway..