Atlas completes acquisition of Southern

Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings (AAWW) completed its acquisition of Southern Air Holdings, increasing its fleet to almost eighty aircraft and strengthening its relationship with DHL Express.

Southern Air Holdings was a privately-held US company (majority owned by Oak Hill Capital Partners), and parent of two airlines – Southern Air and Florida West International Airways. You can read the historical background we provided on Atlas and Southern when Atlas first announced its intention to acquire Southern, but at present, Southern Air operates five 777Fs and five 737-400Fs for DHL Express on long-term CMI contracts. Until recently, Florida West operated up to three 767-300Fs in Latin American service from its base in Miami, but it no longer has any aircraft of its own and operates three 767-300Fs on an interchange basis with LAN Cargo.

As shown in the chart above, the acquisition of the ten Southern Air freighters brings the total number of aircraft in AAWW’s fleet to 79, in a mix of types, in both freighter and passenger configuration, and operated in a variety of ways, including charter, scheduled service, ACMI, CMI, and also dry-leased through AAWW’s Titan Aviation Leasing subsidiary. But more than the number of freighters added, it is important to note that the acquisition allows Atlas to add two new aircraft types (777F and 737-400F) to its operating capability – a process that would take about eighteen months if done organically.

On the financial side, Atlas said the cost of the acquisition was “approximately $110 million,” funded using available cash on hand. Atlas also said the acquisition would be immediately accretive – adding approximately $100 million to AAWW’s annual revenues.

If you are interested in learning more about AAWW, join us at Cargo Facts Asia 2016 where Chung Mak, the company’s head of sales and marketing for the Asia Pacific region will join a panel on Asia-Pacific Air Cargo Trends. Cargo Facts Asia will be held in Hong Kong 19 – 20 April, at the Langham Hotel. To register, or for more information, go to www.cargofactsasia.com.