18th of March 2011

The Nordic supplier of ground handling to the airline industry, Aviator, made an agreement with the Danish company Novia to purchase all shares of Novia and Sturup Handling with completion at the end of April 2011. Novia will comprise approximately one third of Aviator’s overall activities on the Nordic market.

Aviator already owns the Norwegian companies, Norport Handling A/S and Røros Flyservice, as well as the Swedish company, Nordic Aero. The investment fund, Accent Equity 2008, is the majority shareholder in Aviator.

The largest independent ground handling company in the Nordic countries
The acquisition of Novia means that Aviator is now the largest independent, full service ground handling company with activities throughout the Nordic region. Paul Synnott, CEO of Aviator says about the merger:

“The clear strategic intention is to create a single strong Group with focus on accelerated organic growth and potentially acquisitive expansion high on the agenda. We plan to develop our current customer relationships, build new relationships and develop new product areas”               - Paul Synnott says and continues:

“With the acquisition of Novia, Aviator will be able to offer better geographical coverage and operational flexibility to our customers. The combined Company is also much better equipped to compete on the Nordic market and we have a stronger financial foundation to reach our clear goal of becoming the preferred Airport Services Supplier in the Nordic region.”

Part of a major consolidation in the airline industry
The biggest changes in Novia will be at the board level, where initially three people from Aviator will join the board and Paul Synnott will join as Chairman. Novia also views the future optimistically and sees the acquisition as a sign of a larger need for consolidation in the industry.

Acquisition will bring stability to CPH
Ground handling at Copenhagen Airport in particular has been marked by instability in recent years. Paul Synnott, the acquisition will benefit both competition and stability at CPH:

“At Copenhagen Airport in particular, there has been a turbulent atmosphere regarding ground handling. With the acquisition of Novia, we have ensured that Aviator is a financially strong and stable player that will deliver good service at a good price, we are in an excellent position to provide the excellent services our customer demand to support their business”, he concludes.