Carlyle to exit BBA Aviation in $2.1bn deal

December 2015  |  DEALFRONT  |  PRIVATE EQUITY & VENTURE CAPITAL

Financier Worldwide Magazine

Global aviation support and aftermarket services provider, BBA Aviation plc, is to expand its fixed-base operation (FBO) network with the acquisition of Landmark Aviation from The Carlyle Group in a $2.1bn deal.

A major expansion of BBA Aviation’s flight support business Signature Flight Support, the acquisition will see Signature’s existing network of 133 wholly owned and affiliate global locations complemented by Landmark Aviation’s 68 FBOs.

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Landmark Aviation’s network of FBOs are located throughout the US, Canada and Western Europe. Landmark, a portfolio company of The Carlyle Group, offers a wide range of services, including FBO, MRO, aircraft management and charter.

Landmark Aviation’s aircraft maintenance locations will also supplement Signature Flight Support’s existing MRO operations delivered through its Signature TECHNICAir and CSE Citation Centre brands.

“We are very appreciative of the strong relationships we have developed over the years with airport sponsors, customers, and vendors,” said Dan Bucaro, president and chief executive of Landmark Aviation. “We are confident that the success we have achieved at Landmark will carry forward under BBA Aviation’s ownership. We especially would like to thank our team at The Carlyle Group for its exceptional support.”

The Carlyle Group, a global alternative asset manager with $193bn of assets under management across 128 funds, invests across four segments – corporate private equity, real assets, global market strategies and investment solutions. Carlyle employs more than 1700 people in 35 offices across Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, the Middle East, North America and South America and operates in various industries, including aerospace, defence & government services, consumer & retail, energy, financial services, healthcare, industrial, real estate, technology & business services, telecommunications & media and transportation.

Welcoming the acquisition, Adam Palmer, Carlyle’s managing director and head of the Global Aerospace, Defense and Government Services team, said: “We are extremely grateful to Dan and the entire Landmark team for their strong partnership, during which they worked tirelessly to create one of the world’s premier FBO networks and largest managed aircraft fleets. We are proud of the company’s tremendous growth under our ownership and the high level of service provided to its customers.”

Signature Flight Support, the world’s largest fixed-base operation (FBO) and distribution network for business aviation services, offers a range of services including fuelling, hangar and office rentals, ground handling, maintenance and a wide range of crew and passenger amenities at strategic domestic and international locations. Headquartered in Orlando, Florida, the company currently operates at more than 130 locations in the United States, Canada, Caribbean, Europe, South America, Africa and Asia.

Confident that the acquisition of Landmark Aviation is a strategic fit for Signature Flight Support, Maria Sastre, president and chief operating officer of Signature, said: “We are delighted that BBA Aviation has agreed to this proposed acquisition of Landmark. It will significantly expand our reach within North America as well as globally. It will also enhance Signature’s customer value proposition and materially increase the relevance of our network for our customers.”

BBA Aviation’s financial adviser is JPMorgan Limited. Its legal adviser on English law is Slaughter and May, while Sullivan & Cromwell LLP are advising on US law. For Landmark Aviation, Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC and Evercore Group LLC acted as financial advisers. Legal advisers for Landmark and the Carlyle Group are Latham & Watkins LLP, Jones Day and Zuckert, Scoutt & Rasenberger LLP. In addition, Barclays Bank PLC acted as an adviser to BBA Aviation on certain financial aspects of the transaction.

The transaction is subject to regulatory and shareholder approvals and is expected to close in early 2016.

© Financier Worldwide

BY

Fraser Tennant