Boss of Brighton's i360 quits before crucial meeting

The 360-degree pod comprises 24 segments of handmade Italian glass

The boss of Brighton's i360 is to leave his job a day before a meeting to discuss the attraction's future.

Executive director Steve Bax will work until 10 October, but will be paid until the end of February 2019, a British Airways i360 spokeswoman said.

On 11 October, Brighton and Hove City Council will consider restructuring a £36m loan to the i360.

Council advisors say it is unlikely the attraction's owners will be able to pay a loan instalment due in December.

In a report to the council, GVA Real Estate Finance said: "Since opening in 2016, the visitor numbers have not been in line with forecasts and as such the revenue generated has not at all times been sufficient to meet the semi-annual loan repayments to the council.

"Based on the summer trading figures it is unlikely the i360 consortium will be able to meet their full loan obligations in December 2018."

The council has begun to consider options for restructuring the current debt "to ensure their investment is protected", GVA said.

In its first full year about 500,000 people visited the observation tower - 300,000 fewer than forecast.

The i360 tower was made by the same people behind the popular London Eye attraction

In June the owners said they wanted to restructure the loan and reduce the annual payments from £570,000 to £25,000 until 2024.

Following the announcement of Mr Bax's departure, Julia Barfield, chair of Brighton i360 Ltd, said: "To ensure a smooth transition of leadership, we are delighted to announce that David Sharpe, former managing director of the London Eye, has agreed to join us, initially on a part-time basis, until a successor is appointed."

In March 2017 the attraction was forced to close when technical problems left a private party of 180 people, including a heavily pregnant woman, stuck for two hours with no proper toilet facilities.

In another breakdown, 200 passengers were stuck at ground level for more than an hour and two hours later, a second technical fault left another group of visitors stuck in the pod.

Earlier this year the Advertising Standards Authority ruled the i360's claim to be the world's tallest moving observation tower was misleading.