VLM Airlines news 2014-2015

[Boeing767copilot]

Rumors or not? VLM Airlines bought by management today!

[Stij]

Still in rumor mode! But in case it is...

I don't know how much money management owns, but normally there should be an investor behind...

Cheers,

Stij

[B737229]

Seems to be picked up by De Morgen

http://www.demorgen.be/economie/vlm-air ... -a2102894/

[RoMax]

A management buy-out is not that uncommon, especially when talking about smaller divisions of large multinationals that split off from the big mother company.

I don't know how much money management owns, but normally there should be an investor behind...

There might be an financial partner providing a credit line or something, but that doesn't mean that partner will be involved in the management and/or operation of the airline.

[Stij]

A management buy-out is not that uncommon, especially when talking about smaller divisions of large multinationals that split off from the big mother company.

There might be an financial partner providing a credit line or something, but that doesn't mean that partner will be involved in the management and/or operation of the airline.

Sur, it's a management buy out, but all of the MBO I've witnessed, there was always a risk sharing investor behind it, a bank (normally) doesn't give credit lines for the big majority of the investment.

Of course: it all depends on what they bought, what they paid and much they could invest themselves...

Cheers,

Stij

[RoMax]

Sur, it's a management buy out, but all of the MBO I've witnessed, there was always a risk sharing investor behind it, a bank (normally) doesn't give credit lines for the big majority of the investment.

Yes but it all depends on the management its own funds and what they have to pay for the company's shares. Yes I have to admit that I'm not that familiar with the financing of management buy outs like this, but anyway it makes me wonder how much VLM is worth now as a company...

[Stij]

Yes but it all depends on the management its own funds and what they have to pay for the company's shares. Yes I have to admit that I'm not that familiar with the financing of management buy outs like this, but anyway it makes me wonder how much VLM is worth now as a company...

Very true!

Back to aviation after our mergers and acquisitions session!

Would VLM be the company Marcel Buelens was hinting at that would open new destinations?

Cheers,

Stij

[RoMax]

Would VLM be the company Marcel Buelens was hinting at that would open new destinations?

I think it's a safe bet to say that at least some of the routes ANR hinted at, are expected to be flown by VLM.

Makes me very curious which routes and which aircraft VLM is planning to use (as they talk about adding new aircraft to their fleet).

[jeanolieslagers]

VLM has released a press note, stating that the management has bought the 100% share of Intro.
The company is planning to expand the fleet of 12 Fokkers and they will again start to fly scheduled services.

[Boeing767copilot]

VLM Airlines’ chief operating officer and accountable manager, Steve Blair, confirmed that the current agreement with Intro subsidiary CityJet will continue without change. “That deal expires at the end of summer 2015,” he noted, adding that the airline will be negotiating to extend the contract.

http://www.hmgaerospace.com/news/show/7741

[sn26567]

... they will again start to fly scheduled services.

Aren't they already flying many scheduled services from LCY on behalf of Cityjet?

I think it's a safe bet to say that at least some of the routes ANR hinted at, are expected to be flown by VLM.

Possible, but with a strong position at LCY, the future may look better there than at a hypothetical ANR base where JAF has already a footstep in the door.

[RoMax]

... they will again start to fly scheduled services.

Aren't they already flying many scheduled services from LCY on behalf of Cityjet?

They do, but for VLM that are not scheduled services, that are ACMI services. What they mean is that VLM will relaunch scheduled operations under their own name.

[Boavida]

I'm dreaming of a small but full-service airline VLM with a fleet of A319 and a base at BRU. A bit like SN Brussels Airlines in the early days...

Or the other way around: why not transform VLM into a Belgian/Flemish LCC?

Wouldn't that be nice?

[jan_olieslagers]

....

[[off-topic]] allow me to point out that I am in no way related to this poster - and frankly I regret the choice of a nickname so much alike - risk of confusion - luckily I am not a frequent poster anymore.

[jan_olieslagers]

why not transform VLM into a Belgian/Flemish LCC

VLM has no tradition of low-cost operations, not the right aircraft, not the right staff. Perhaps even not the right homebase.

[sn26567]

Management acquires Belgium’s VLM Airlines

CityJet’s regional wet-lease and charter subsidiary VLM Airlines is to be acquired by its management team, just months after its parent company was sold by Air France to Germany’s Intro Aviation.

Belgian regional wet-lease provider VLM was created in 1993 as a scheduled airline, but ultimately shifted to wet-lease and charter work after being acquired by Air France-KLM’s Irish regional subsidiary CityJet in late 2007.

However, in February Air France-KLM sold CityJet and VLM Airlines to German investor Intro Aviation and the two regional airlines are now parting company. “We received an offer from the management of VLM Airlines that we felt we could not refuse,” Intro Aviation MD Peter Oncken said.

Following the ownership change, which is expected to complete in the first week in November, VLM Airlines is planning to return to scheduled operations and is “evaluating a number of possibilities” to renew its all-Fokker 50 fleet.

VLM Airlines CEO and majority shareholder Arthur White said: “As an independent airline we will keep offering ACMI and charter services, but we will also start offering scheduled services in the near future. We are already studying a number of possible new routes from Antwerp International Airport. We will communicate this as soon as the deals have been concluded.”

Source: ATW online

[A318]

A319 and LCC? No don't think so, don't be a follower but a leader!
It's better to focus at a niche market like they did before

[Avnu]

I feel the 'new' VLM could actually benefit greatly by joining BA as a franchise partner as did Sun Air of Scandinavia. Since the heydays of the 'old' VLM at LCY, BA has been agressively trying to push CityJet out of that market and has done surprisingly well with their BA Cityflyer operations. At the same time, Sun Air is running a very healthy business by charging very high prices (BRU-BLL is usually around 350 euro return) and leaving all of the marketing and a lot of the logistics to BA.

I'm sure BA would be keen to expand further at LCY and I'm convinced VLM could negotiate a deal where they become a franchise partner, operate most of their flights for BA out of LCY but still retain the possibility to not only do charter work (as does Sun Ait) but also operate some flights under their own brand name. These could be codeshared with BA, as would almost surely be the case for ANR-LCY. At the same time obviously, choosing BA over CityJet and not renegotiating the contract would make BA the dominant carrier at LCY while changing very little - operationally speaking - for VLM.

Come to think of it, BA Cityflyer is at present a bit more ambitious than its fleet allows and has had to wet lease at least one plane from Eastern Airways for flights to Rotterdam and the Isle of Man. Surely, VLM could take over these flights in a heartbeat given their experience on both routes.

As a passenger, I would dread the ticket prices that would result from such a deal, but the more I think about it, the more I'm convinced becoming a BA franchise partner would give VLM a very solid future. The deal between BA and Sun Air has been running for 18 years showing BA to be a good partner for the long term which would surely make it easier for VLM to invest in new planes.

[skumfiduse]

I feel the 'new' VLM could actually benefit greatly by joining BA as a franchise partner as did Sun Air of Scandinavia. Since the heydays of the 'old' VLM at LCY, BA has been agressively trying to push CityJet out of that market and has done surprisingly well with their BA Cityflyer operations. At the same time, Sun Air is running a very healthy business by charging very high prices (BRU-BLL is usually around 350 euro return) and leaving all of the marketing and a lot of the logistics to BA.

I'm sure BA would be keen to expand further at LCY and I'm convinced VLM could negotiate a deal where they become a franchise partner, operate most of their flights for BA out of LCY but still retain the possibility to not only do charter work (as does Sun Ait) but also operate some flights under their own brand name. These could be codeshared with BA, as would almost surely be the case for ANR-LCY. At the same time obviously, choosing BA over CityJet and not renegotiating the contract would make BA the dominant carrier at LCY while changing very little - operationally speaking - for VLM.

Come to think of it, BA Cityflyer is at present a bit more ambitious than its fleet allows and has had to wet lease at least one plane from Eastern Airways for flights to Rotterdam and the Isle of Man. Surely, VLM could take over these flights in a heartbeat given their experience on both routes.

As a passenger, I would dread the ticket prices that would result from such a deal, but the more I think about it, the more I'm convinced becoming a BA franchise partner would give VLM a very solid future. The deal between BA and Sun Air has been running for 18 years showing BA to be a good partner for the long term which would surely make it easier for VLM to invest in new planes.

Sun-Air of Scandinavia and Comair (BA franchise in South Africa) are operating on niche markets where BA mainline and BA Cityflyer are not operating in, with the exception of connecting flights to their respective home bases.

We all know what happened when VLM joined one of the other competitors. They seem to recover well from that hangover. Don't expect them to join any other merge-party in the near future. Although you never know in airline business.

[A318]

I agee with skumfiduse, I think they will stay very far away from another merge.
Besides that, don't forget slots are not in VLM hands but in Cityjet hands so even if VLM should join BA (which will never happen I think) they will never be the major airline anymore in LCY. What I do not know is if they received some Cityjet slots when the deal was closed but I don't think so.