The Financial Post reports in its Thursday edition that before its shutdown this week, Lynx Air hoped to pay off some of its debt to a top investor through a purchase by rival discount carrier Flair Airlines. A Canadian Press dispatch to the Post says that according to documents filed with the Alberta Court of King's Bench, proceeds from a tentative deal with Flair would have gone toward Lynx's $124.3-million debt to Indigo Partners, the U.S. private equity firm run by Bill Franke that owns a quarter of Lynx. The 1,275-page filing refers to Flair dozens of times, including to a planned "transaction" and a non-binding agreement signed on Jan. 11. Flair confirmed it had been in talks with Lynx about "potential business opportunities," chief executive officer Stephen Jones said in a statement. "As part of our standard business practice, we continuously evaluate market opportunities." When it filed for creditor protection, Lynx also owed $25.6-million in unpaid taxes to the federal government and $47.8-million to various trade creditors, according to court documents. Lynx owes a further $4.1-million to the Toronto and Montreal airports and $4.5-million to Delta Air Lines for aircraft maintenance and warehousing.