Article from BTNews 29 JULY 2019
CityJet in Air Nostrum merger
A proposed merger between Ireland-based CityJet and Air Nostrum of Spain has won approval from the European Commission, heralding the formation of what would be the largest pan-European regional airline group.
The EU’s anti-trust body said the deal raised no concerns as the companies “have moderate market shares, a sufficient number of competitors remains in the market and the barriers to entry are low.”
The proposed merger, which would produce an airline with a combined fleet of almost 100 aircraft and yearly revenues of around €700m, was first announced at the Farnborough Airshow in July last year.
Reports last week said the plan envisaged a joint venture with a single holding company and the two airlines retaining their individual identities. Air Nostrum is an Iberia-franchised airline for regional flights.
According to the filing for the EU, CityJet is part of the portfolio managed by Fortress Investment, based in New York. The carrier has a fleet of nearly 100 regional aircraft. Japan’s SoftBank Group acquired Fortress at the end of 2017.
Air Nostrum is part of Air Investment Valencia, a holding controlled by Carlos Bertomeu. Neither company has disclosed the name of the joint venture and respective shareholdings have not been published.
OUR READERS' FINEST WORDS (All times and dates are GMT)
All comments are filtered to exclude any excesses but the Editor does not have to agree with what is being said. 100 words maximum