Silverjet aquires Flyjet

Flyjet announced last week that they were going to operate scheduled transatlantic servcies from LTN with a 767, so this makes sense now…

UK premium start-up Silverjet acquires Flyjet
Kerry Ezard, London (02Oct06, 09:04 GMT, 229 words)

UK premium transatlantic start-up Silverjet has moved forward its launch date by acquiring charter carrier Flyjet and lessor Skylease in a deal worth up to £5.5 million ($10.3 million).

Silverjet says the acquisition of the whole of Flyjet’s issued share capital gives the start-up “immediate access” to an air operator’s certificate (AOC), and will enable it to launch operations within three to four months.

By acquiring Skylease, Silverjet has also secured an additional Boeing 767, which the carrier says will now be its launch aircraft. Skylease also owns two Boeing 757s, which are operated on a charter basis by Flyjet.

In addition, the acquisition of Flyjet will serve to reduce competition for Silverjet on the London-New York route; the charter carrier had been planning to launch low-cost service on the same London Luton-Newark route that forms the basis of Silverjet’s business plan.

Silverjet will pay between £4 million and £5.5 million for Flyjet and Skylease over the next three years, dependent on the performance of the two companies.

“The acquisitions we have announced today mean that Silverjet will be ready for take-off within three to four months,” says Silverjet CEO Lawrence Hunt. “Launching Silverjet in such a short period of time following our successful [initial public offering] is a significant achievement for our management team.”

Silverjet says it will announce its official launch date “within the next few weeks”.

Source: Air Transport Intelligence news