Private aviation group Vista Global has agreed to acquire charter jet specialist Air Hamburg, one of Europe’s largest operators.
The transaction is expected to be completed in the first half of 2022, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals. Additional terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Founded in 2006, Air Hamburg flies to more than 1,000 destinations in Europe and operated 18,800 flights for its clients in 2021.
The acquisition will add 44 planes to Vista's fleet, bringing its total to more than 240 aircraft globally, according to the company.
Vista members will have access to Air Hamburg’s fleet of Lineage 1000E, Dassault Falcon 7X and Embraer Legacy aircraft.
The management team of Air Hamburg will remain in their positions, and Vista plans to “welcome over 650 highly skilled new colleagues” into the company, Vista founder and chairman Thomas Flohr said in a statement.
“Air Hamburg is an impressive, well-established and profitable business with a long-standing track record in best-in-class client service — like Vista, it is known for its reliability and consistency throughout a scaling fleet and high utilisation” added Flohr.
This latest deal follows Vista's acquisitions of Red Wing Aviation, Apollo Jets and Talon Air.
Vista expects an increase of around 30 per cent in its flight hours globally following the completion of the Air Hamburg purchase.
Floris Helmers, Air Hamburg’s CEO, added: “This is an incredible opportunity to remain at the top of the growing business aviation sector.
“This co-operation between two of the largest operators means increasing our stability and securing further growth for our business while allowing our team to showcase their strength and competencies to the most sophisticated clientele.”