Tag: Wow Air

Icelandair Group’s Acquisition Of Wow Air Cancelled

November 30, 2018 / WIL BALDWIN

Icelandair has released the following statement regarding the mutual decision to cancel Icelandair’s takeover of Wow Air:

November 29, 2018 04:00 ET | Source: Icelandair Group hf.

The acquisition of Icelandair Group of Wow air, based on a purchase agreement signed on November 5th, has been cancelled. Both parties agree on this outcome.

Icelandair Group hf. issued a stock exchange release last Monday, November 26th, stating that the company estimated that it would be unlikely that all of the conditions in the share purchase agreement would be fulfilled by the shareholders’ meeting on November 30th. That situation remains unchanged.
Therefore, it is unlikely that the Board of Directors of Icelandair Group can recommend to the shareholders that they agree to the purchase agreement. Furthermore, the Board does not intend to submit to the shareholders’ meeting a proposal to postpone decision-making on the purchase agreement.

Due to this this situation, both parties agree to abandon the aforementioned purchase agreement.
Icelandair Group will hold its shareholders’ meeting on Friday, November 30, as previously announced. An authorisation proposal for the Board to increase the share capital of Icelandair Group is on the agenda of the shareholders’ meeting.

Bogi Nils Bogason, Interim President & CEO of Icelandair Group:
“The planned acquisition of Icelandair Group of Wow air will not go through. The Board of Directors and management of both companies have worked on this project in earnest. This conclusion is certainly disappointing. We want to thank WOW air‘s management for a good cooperation in the project during recent weeks . All our best wishes go out to the owners and staff of the Wow air. “

Skúli Mogensen, CEO and Founder of Wow air:
“It was clear at the outset that it was an ambitious task to complete all the conditions of the share purchase agreement in this short period. We thank the Icelandair Group’s management team for this challenging project, and also wish the management and staff of Icelandair Group all the best.”

Further information:
Bogi Nils Bogason, Interim President & CEO
bogi@icelandairgrop.is

Following the news of the cancelled deal, it has been reported that budget airline roup Indigo Partners has agreed to buy a stake in the struggling discount carrier.

Click the link below for the full Indigo Partners-Wow Air story!

Indigo Partners invests in Wow Air

JetBlue Wants Regulators To Review Joint Ventures

November 16, 2018 / WIL BALDWIN

(Reuters) – The chief executive of JetBlue Airways Corp, which has made no secret of its desire to expand into transatlantic service, said on Thursday that U.S. and European regulators should review joint ventures that have allowed big airlines to dominate the market.

JetBlue CEO Robin Hayes, speaking at an airline industry event in New York, said consumers were at risk of decades of high fares because of legacy transatlantic partnerships.

JetBlue (JBLU.O), the sixth largest U.S. airline, wants to service Europe from its main hubs in New York, Boston and Fort Lauderdale, Florida, but is concerned about challenges posed by the big three U.S. legacy airlines’ control of important foreign markets through their global alliances.

American Airlines Group Inc (AAL.O), Delta Air Lines Inc (DAL.N) and United Airlines (UAL.O) are each part of a global airline alliance that together control nearly 80 percent of the transatlantic market. The three carriers also have joint ventures with member airlines in Europe that allow them to coordinate prices and schedules and share revenues.

“We believe that regulators should be doing everything they can to make it possible for new players and new models to have a fair shot at competing,” Hayes said.

Hayes believes competition authorities in the United States, the UK and the European Union should force slot divestitures to create a level playing field for new entrants, particularly in the wake of major consolidation among U.S. carriers over the past decade.

For example, since American Airlines forged a commercial tie-up with fellow oneworld alliance member British Airways (ICAG.L) in 2010, it has merged with US Airways to become the world’s largest airline.

Such mergers have made it more difficult for younger, low-fare carriers like JetBlue to access gates and slots – as airport take-off and landing rights are known – at congested airports where the larger airlines dominate.

A handful of Europe-based budget carriers, including Norwegian Air (NWC.OL) and WOW Air, have broken into the transatlantic market, but two – Primera Air and Monarch Airlines – were forced into bankruptcy over the past year.

JetBlue argues that Mint, the carrier’s version of business class, has driven a 50 percent decline in premium fares on some competing U.S. routes. It believes it can drive a similar reduction for premium travel between the United States and Europe.

Separately on Thursday, JetBlue announced a biometric self-boarding gate for international flights at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), becoming the first domestic airline to launch the use of facial recognition technology to verify passengers with a quick photo capture for international travel.

JetBlue has 14 million annual JFK customers.

(Reporting by Tracy Rucinski; Editing by Leslie Adler)

Image from www.jetblue.com

British Airways Loses New York Crown To Norwegian

October 8, 2018 / WIL BALDWIN

LONDON (Reuters) – Norwegian Air Shuttle (NWC.OL) has overtaken British Airways as the biggest non-U.S. airline on transatlantic routes to and from the New York area, in the latest illustration of the low cost carrier’s move into British Airways territory.

Norwegian carried 1.67 million passengers to or from airports in the New York area in the 12 months to the end of July, compared with the 1.63 million carried by British Airways, data from the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey showed.

No-frills carrier Norwegian has been rapidly expanding in the transatlantic market over the last five years, prompting the owner of British Airways, IAG (ICAG.L), to try to buy it earlier this year.

The data showed four U.S. airlines, led by United, are the biggest carriers of international passengers out of the main airports in the New York area, which include John F. Kennedy International, LaGuardia and Newark Liberty International.

Air Canada is the biggest non-U.S. carrier of international passengers, but its dominance is on travel between the United States and Canada.

Norwegian, and other relatively recent entrants to the market such as Wow Air, have led a charge to shake up Europe’s long-haul flight market, offering ticket prices that can be as little as half those charged by traditional carriers.

The traditional airlines have responded by selling a new budget class of ticket, as well as setting up, in IAG’s case, new airline Level to compete directly with Norwegian on price.

Lufthansa has also started budget long-haul flights using its Eurowings brand.

Norwegian said in May it had rejected two approaches from IAG, which also owns the Iberia, Aer Lingus and Vueling brands, because they undervalued the company. IAG owns a 4.6 percent stake in Norwegian.

The pace of Norwegian’s growth – figures from July 2017 show it only carried 750,000 passengers into and out of the New York region – has weighed on its finances and it faces mounting pressure to control costs and shore up its balance sheet.

British Airways did not immediately respond to a request to comment on the figures.

(Reporting by Sarah Young; Editing by Mark Potter)

Icelandair Group’s Acquisition Of Wow Air Cancelled

JetBlue Wants Regulators To Review Joint Ventures

British Airways Loses New York Crown To Norwegian

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