PE Firm KKR Buying Atlantic Aviation for Nearly $4.5B

U.S.-based private equity company KKR today announced that it is acquiring Atlantic Aviation, an FBO chain with 69 U.S. locations, from Macquarie Infrastructure Corporation (MIC) for nearly $4.5 billion. The deal, which is expected to close in the fourth quarter, comes on the heels of the sale of Signature Aviation, the world's largest FBO chain, to private-equity firms Blackstone, GIP, and Cascade for $4.7 billion.

MIC is selling its Atlantic Aviation business to KKR for $4.475 billion in cash and assumed debt and reorganization obligations. Overall, MIC expects to receive $3.525 billion at closing. MIC purchased Atlantic Aviation and its 10 FBOs in 2004 for a reported $238 million.

“We are proud of the robust growth Atlantic Aviation has achieved under our ownership, which resulted in strong interest from prospective buyers during the sale process,” said MIC CEO Christopher Frost. “We are pleased with the outcome of the sale process and the unlocking of additional value for MIC shareholders.”

Atlantic Aviation CEO Lou Pepper told AIN that “KKR's focus on providing long term capital combined with our existing platform for growth will allow Atlantic to expand into key areas and to meet our customers’ needs now and into the future.”

Eve Lands 50-ship eVTOL Order from Helisul

Brazilian helicopter operator Helisul Aviation today placed an order for up to 50 of the four-passenger eVTOLs being developed by Eve Urban Air Mobility Solutions. This announcement comes six days after the Embraer subsidiary logged a separate order for up to 200 of its all-electric, lift-and-cruise model from Halo, the new urban air mobility service launched by business aviation group—and Directional Aviation division—OneSky Flight.

The first of the new aircraft are due to be delivered in 2026. Before then, Helisul and Eve plan to start proof-of-concept air taxi operations in Brazil using Helisul’s existing fleet of Airbus and Bell helicopters.

Though the partners have not specified where commercial operations will begin, São Paulo would seem a likely location given the high volume of helicopter services there. Without providing any further details, the announcement said Helisul and Eve intend “to evaluate how to co-create solutions for urban air mobility leveraging Brazil’s existing air-taxi infrastructure.”

Today’s announced deal is similar to that made with OneSky Flight last week. Its new Halo division incorporates helicopter operators UK-based Halo Aviation and Northeast U.S.-based Associated Aircraft Group.

Want more? You can find a longer version of this article at FutureFlight.aero, a news and information resource developed by AIN to provide objective coverage and analysis of cutting-edge aviation technology.

Former TAG CEO Mansour Ojjeh Dies at 68

Mansour Akram Ojjeh, the French Saudi Arabia-born entrepreneur who was CEO and part-owner of TAG, died on June 6. He was 68.

Born in 1952, the son of Saudi businessman and TAG founder Akram Ojjeh, he grew up in France but attended schools in the U.S., graduating in 1974 with a degree in business administration from Menlo College in California. Mansour and his brother Aziz inherited the Luxembourg-based conglomerate TAG Group Holdings after their father died in 1991. Established in 1975, the group had a stake in multiple industries—from commercial real estate to Formula One racing and, until recently, business aviation.

Under the stewardship of Mansour and his brother, TAG grew into an expansive international business aviation operation that over the years ran charter, FBO, management, maintenance, and brokerage businesses. TAG also played an integral role in the development of Farnborough Airport into a significant business aviation center. However, in recent years, TAG divested its business aviation holdings.

Ojjeh’s interests and business involvements were varied. He was active in the Formula One world through TAG’s stake in the McLaren Group. Ojjeh also at one time was the owner of watch-maker TAG Heuer and held a 10 percent interest in high-end jewelers Asprey and Garrard.

Over the past decade, Ojjeh had suffered from health issues, leading to a double lung transplant in late 2013.

Ross Aviation Breaks Ground on Scottsdale Hangar

Ross Aviation broke ground last week on a 56,000-sq-ft hangar and two adjacent 3,000-sq-ft office buildings at its Scottsdale [Arizona] Municipal Airport (KSDL) FBO complex. The $15 million project at KSDL, which the company said is one of its most active year-round locations, is expected to be completed in the first quarter of next year.

According to Ross Aviation, the hangar will have two primary bays that can accommodate ultra-long-range business jets such as the Gulfstream G650. To further the company’s sustainability effort, Ross Aviation said, the roof of the hangar and office complex will include a bank of solar panels and the 36-space parking area will have EV charging stations.

“Putting shovels in the ground is the start of providing even greater hangar capacity for our customers here in Scottsdale,” said Ross Aviation CEO Brian Corbett. “Moreover, the groundbreaking further affirms our promise to invest in creating facilities that allow us to provide an unmatched level of flight hospitality.”

Meanwhile, the company expects to continue to expand its network of 18 FBOs, with groundbreakings on at least two more facilities expected by year-end, a Ross Aviation spokeswoman told AIN.

Partners in Aviation Sees Managed Co-ownership Growth

Partners In Aviation (PIA), which has developed a “managed co-ownership” model that matches two owners to one aircraft, is seeing that business continue to grow. PIA noted that its time-to-match aircraft owners metric has dropped from the initial six months to just a couple of months.

“When we first brought managed co-ownership to the market in 2018, the concept was new,” said PIA founder and aviation veteran Mark Molloy. “Taking what had in the past been an ad hoc, legally-intimidating, co-ownership search process and creating a coherent operation was a major undertaking,” he said. According to Molloy, that process involves identifying, vetting, and introducing like-minded co-owners based in a common geographic region, and then getting them into an aircraft they choose.

PIA believes it now has built a “critical mass” of interested co-owner candidates nationwide, significantly reducing the time it takes to pair owners. That ownership has crossed turbine categories, the company added, including turboprops and jets from light to heavy.

“At the end of the first quarter, our time-to-match average is down to two months. It’s a gratifying statistic and underlines the acceptance, interest, and growing popularity of managed co-ownership,” he said. “Our inquiries continue to climb.” As the program matures and more owners come in, Molloy said they are having a “more efficient experience.”

EASA Moving Forward on New Aircraft Operating Rules

EASA has published an Opinion expressing its intent to move forward with an update to the European Union (EU) aviation regulatory framework applicable to all-weather aircraft operations (AWOs) and flight crew training. This follows consideration of comments submitted to four separate notices of proposed amendments issued over the past two years.

Under the rulemaking, AWOs would have a “performance- and risk-based approach,” meaning they would set an appropriate balance between performance-based and prescriptive principles depending on the type of air operations. They would also allow for the use of enhanced flight vision systems to the maximum extent possible and helicopter flights under IFR using point-in-space approaches and departures.

This rulemaking also aims to improve initial and recurrent pilot training and checking, conditions for the operation of more than one aircraft type or variant, acceptance of previous training and checking by non-commercial operators, and multi-pilot operations of single-pilot-certified helicopters.

The changes are expected to reduce the regulatory burden, increase cost-effectiveness, improve harmonization with the FAA and other national aviation authorities, and transpose as much as feasible the standards and recommended practices of ICAO.

Business Aircraft Broker’s Group Joins EBAA

The International Aircraft Dealers Association (IADA) has joined the European Business Aviation Association (EBAA) as a full voting member. IADA executive director Wayne Starling explained that IADA’s involvement in EBAA affairs is an extension of its members' global reach in aircraft sales.

“Several of our members are already active in the EBAA and have recommended IADA organizational involvement as part of our focus on international business aviation activities,” Starling added. EBAA represents more than 700 business aviation companies in Europe that include corporate and commercial operators, manufacturers, airports, and FBOs with a fleet of more than 1,000 aircraft.

The move also results from the IADA’s 2018 transition from a largely U.S.-centric organization known as the National Aircraft Resale Association to an international one. That change included a new emphasis on developing professional standards and making aircraft deals more ethical and transparent.

GA Groups Testify Against Proposed Canadian Luxury Tax

Leaders of the Canadian Business Aviation Association (CBAA) and Canadian Owners and Pilots Association (COPA) cited the many negative effects of a proposed 10 percent luxury tax on general aviation aircraft during testimony late last month before the Canadian government’s Standing Committee on Finance.

“Very few aircraft fall into the personal luxury category,” said CBAA president and CEO Anthony Norejko. “They are nothing like yachts or high-end cars. They are not a lifestyle choice, but rather a safe, reliable, and efficient mode of transportation. The imposition of such a tax on aircraft used for business purposes will have a number of downstream negative implications for safety and sustainability, as well as for the people, businesses, and communities that rely on our aircraft."

COPA president and CEO Christine Gervais told committee members that it is “misrepresentative” to believe only the wealthy own private aircraft. Among the Canadians who own personal aircraft are “medical professionals who travel to remote communities not serviced by commercial operators. Small business owners use their personal aircraft in locations that are also not accessible to mainstream operators, ensuring their goods and services are available to all Canadians. Farmers depend on their crop-dusting aircraft.”

In addition, the two industry leaders argued that the new tax might also have environmental and safety impacts.

AIN Product Support Survey Now Open

Tell us about the product support you receive from business aviation OEMs. The 2021 AIN Product Support Survey is now open, ready for selected readers to rate aircraft, engine, and avionics support. AIN readers who have been picked to participate in this year’s Product Support Survey should have received their password and link to the online survey by e-mail. The survey needs to be completed by midnight on June 11.