Tag: institutional

Air Transport Services Group prices $350 million convertible senior notes offering

August 11, 2023 / WIL BALDWIN

WILMINGTON, Ohio (BUSINESS WIRE) – Air Transport Services Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATSG) today announced the pricing of its offering of $350,000,000 aggregate principal amount of 3.875% convertible senior notes due 2029 (the “notes”) in a private offering to qualified institutional buyers pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). The issuance and sale of the notes are scheduled to settle on August 14, 2023, subject to customary closing conditions. ATSG also granted the initial purchasers of the notes a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional $50,000,000 principal amount of notes.

The notes will be senior, unsecured obligations of ATSG and will accrue interest at a rate of 3.875% per annum, payable semi-annually in arrears on February 15 and August 15 of each year, beginning on February 15, 2024. The notes will mature on August 15, 2029, unless earlier repurchased, redeemed or converted. Before February 15, 2029, noteholders will have the right to convert their notes only upon the occurrence of certain events. From and after February 15, 2029, noteholders may convert their notes at any time at their election until the close of business on the second scheduled trading day immediately before the maturity date. ATSG will settle conversions in cash and, if applicable, shares of its common stock. The initial conversion rate is 31.2864 shares of common stock per $1,000 principal amount of notes, which represents an initial conversion price of approximately $31.96 per share of common stock. The initial conversion price represents a premium of approximately 42.5% over the last reported sale price of $22.43 per share of ATSG’s common stock on August 9, 2023. The conversion rate and conversion price will be subject to adjustment upon the occurrence of certain events.

The notes will be redeemable, in whole or in part (subject to certain limitations), for cash at ATSG’s option at any time, and from time to time, on or after August 15, 2026 and on or before the 50th scheduled trading day immediately before the maturity date, but only if the last reported sale price per share of ATSG’s common stock exceeds 130% of the conversion price for a specified period of time. The redemption price will be equal to the principal amount of the notes to be redeemed, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to, but excluding, the redemption date.

Leonardo Celebrates 20th Anniversary of AW139 Helicopter First Flight

February 6, 2021 / WIL BALDWIN

Leonardo celebrates today the 20th anniversary of the AW139 helicopter’s maiden flight. The first aircraft took to the skies from the Company’s facility in Cascina Costa di Samarate, Italy on 3 February 2001. The helicopter flew for 45 minutes checking initial airworthiness tests, hovering, lateral and forward flight, handling qualities and subsystems. This soon confirmed the impressive characteristics and the smoothness of the new model and its performance and capabilities were to become a new market benchmark, making it the most important helicopter programme in the last two decades at an international level.

The AW139 intermediate-twin engine 7 tonne boasts orders of almost 1,200 units from more than 280 customers in over 70 countries on all continents. The aircraft has shown extraordinary levels of reliability and operational capabilities with more than 3 million flight hours recorded since the first delivery took place at the beginning of 2004. Data of use testifies the extreme versatility of the AW139 which satisfies any market need: approximately half the world’s fleet for public utility tasks such as search and rescue and air ambulance, law enforcement, fire-fighting, disaster relief and military duties. The rest account for a leading position in its class in the offshore transport sector, plus VIP, institutional and corporate transport as well as other civil missions. The AW139 fleet has a global presence: around 30% in Europe, almost as much in Asia and Australasia, 15% in the Americas, followed by the Middle East. The international success of the AW139 is so important that to meet market demands the helicopter is produced on different assembly lines both in Italy, in the Vergiate plant, and in the United States in Philadelphia which has delivered around 30% of all units to date. The US Air Force will soon introduce the AW139-based Boeing MH-139 to replace the UH-1N fleet.

The AW139 has grown significantly over the years, adapting to the changing needs of customers. The maximum take-off weight increased from 6.4 to 7 tons. Almost 1,000 mission kits and equipment have been certified. With advanced protection systems against icing, the AW139 can fly in all-weather conditions. This model is also the only one in the world capable of continuing to fly for over 60 minutes without oil in the transmission, twice as much as the 30 minutes set by certification authorities. In 2020 new distinguished features for the avionics suite were introduced including synthetic vision, Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System with offshore modes, improved 2D maps and wireless data loading, increasing crew situational awareness and reducing workload for operations at night or in marginal weather. Despite the experience and maturity achieved in almost 17 years of operational activity, the AW139 remains a young and modern programme, destined to play a leading role into the future. The AW139 truly embeds all areas of excellence and leadership in its field at Leonardo such as transmissions and dynamics, system integration and customization, best in class performance, mission versatility, latest safety standards and a comprehensive range of increasingly localised customer support and training services and solutions, developed and grown to allow customers worldwide to maximise the capabilities of the type.

The aircraft of choice in its class against which all existing and newcomers are measured, the AW139 also represents a turning point in the rotary-wing sector through the introductory concept of the Leonardo “helicopter family”. The AW139 is, in fact, the forefather of a helicopter family comprising of the smaller and lighter AW169 and the larger and heavier AW189. Models, the only case in the world, that share the same design philosophy, the same high performance, the same flight characteristics and the same certification standards, as well as the same approach to maintenance and training. A concept that allows operators with large diversified fleets, with models ranging from 4 to 9 tons of weight, to create significant synergies in crew training, flight operations, maintenance and logistics support.

Delta CFO Paul Jacobson to Retire After 23-year Career

February 29, 2020 / WIL BALDWIN

Jacobson, who was named the airline industry’s best CFO eight times, will remain at Delta while a successor is named and throughout the transition.

Paul Jacobson, Delta’s Chief Financial Officer, is retiring after a remarkable career at Delta that spanned more than two decades.

Jacobson will remain at Delta while a successor is named and throughout the transition. He joined the company in 1997 and was named CFO in 2012.

“Paul played a crucial role in Delta’s bankruptcy process and the strategy that led Delta to regain our investment-grade balance sheet while also investing billions in our people, product and service,” Delta CEO Ed Bastian wrote in a memo to employees Friday. “Paul has a gift for sharing financial messages that are clear, actionable and easily comprehended, ensuring that Delta people understand our financial standing, goals and path forward.”

Jacobson was named the airline industry’s best CFO eight times by Institutional Investor magazine’s poll of Wall Street analysts and investors. In his memo, Bastian also highlighted Jacobson’s service to the community, including his mission to raise awareness and funding for the American Heart Association after a member of his team experienced a heart attack at work.

Jacobson also helped establish the Delta Air Lines Aviation Education Building at his alma mater, Auburn University, providing resources for the next generation to learn to fly and pursue careers in aviation.

“When he leaves Delta later this year, his legacy will be our strong financial foundation and a best-in-class Finance team,” Bastian wrote.

Ariane 6 Rocket Seeks First Commercial Deals

February 21, 2019 / WIL BALDWIN

BREMEN, Germany (Reuters) – Ariane 6, Europe’s next-generation space rocket, is expected to win its first two commercial launch orders in coming weeks, company officials said, a key milestone as the European launcher vies for orders against Elon Musk’s U.S. competitor SpaceX.

Operator Arianespace faces increased competition from SpaceX and Blue Origin, owned by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. Japan and India also pose a growing challenge.

Ariane 6 has three institutional orders in hand from the European Commission and France and is close to signing deals with two commercial customers, said Mathias Spude, spokesman for ArianeGroup, a joint venture of Airbus and Safran, that is the majority stakeholder in Arianespace.

ArianeGroup has invested 400 million euros (£347 million) of its own funds in the 3.4-billion-euro development of Ariane 6 – a project key to ensuring Europe’s independent access to space and a market valued at over $1 trillion by 2040.

Manufacturers say the rocket will be more versatile than Ariane 5, able to carry out missions from placing as many as 90 small satellites in low-earth orbit to taking classic spy satellites to far higher perches in geostationary orbit.

But the business case depends on drumming up enough commercial business to augment the 5-6 institutional launches expected in Europe annually in coming years, about a quarter of those planned in the United States.

European governments also face industry pressure to use Ariane 6 even if they could get cheaper rides using SpaceX.

“Europe continues to need its own access to space – the market of the future,” said Matthias Wachter with the BDI German Federation of Industry. “It doesn’t make sense to use European tax money to develop our own rocket but then launch satellites with competitors from the United States or Asia.”

Ariane 6, due for a first launch in 2020, was designed to save significant costs compared to Ariane 5, but industry experts say it will still cost around 70 million euros per launch – well above the rate offered by SpaceX, which uses reusable rocket technology and can count on larger U.S. orders.

Ariane 6’s designers insist innovative production techniques will favour the European launcher when the commercial market recovers from a recent slump.

“When it wakes up … we will be on the market with a rocket that is 40 percent cheaper, and will continue to reduce costs after that,” Spude told Reuters at the Ariane 6 production site.

Still, experts say SpaceX is widely credited with jolting the overall market with a keen focus on cutting costs, forcing Europe to shake up its launch industry.

(Reporting by Andrea Shalal, Editing by Tim Hepher)

Air Transport Services Group prices $350 million convertible senior notes offering

Leonardo Celebrates 20th Anniversary of AW139 Helicopter First Flight

Delta CFO Paul Jacobson to Retire After 23-year Career

Ariane 6 Rocket Seeks First Commercial Deals

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