Niki back in the airline business

FastLapp · Feb 10, 2018

http://atwonline.com/airlines/niki-lauda-wins-niki-bid-retake-ownership-bankrupt-carrier

Niki Lauda—ex-Formula 1 champion and founder of Austria-based airberlin subsidiary NIKI—will retake ownership of NIKI, rebranding the bankrupt carrier as “Laudamotion.”

NIKI administrators finalized the deal Jan. 23 after marathon talks, overturning an agreed-upon transaction with International Airlines Group (IAG) and its LCC subsidiary Vueling.

“In the early hours of this morning, Laudamotion GmbH emerged from a transparent bidding process as the best bidder,” NIKI’s Austrian and German administrators, Ulla Reisch and Lucas Floether, said in a joint statement. The administrators, who did not disclose a purchase price, said they expect legal approval to follow soon.

Lauda told ATW the carrier will be rebranded into Laudamotion, the same name as a General Aviation company he owns with an air operator’s certificate (AOC). The AOC should enable the carrier to restart operations by the end of March, he said.

Lauda also offered to take on nearly all of NIKI’s 1,000 employees and said he had secured 15 aircraft. “For this number of aircraft I need all employees,” he said. The new carrier will focus on tourist destinations.

Airberlin filed for bankruptcy in August 2017 and ceased operations in October 2017.

NIKI—which filed for insolvency Dec. 13, 2017 and abruptly ceased operations—sealed a deal with IAG for €20 million ($24 million) at the end of December. However, the transaction was based on insolvency proceedings taking place in Germany. A Berlin regional court later ruled that bankruptcy proceedings should be conducted in Austria rather than in Germany, putting the deal in jeopardy.

A second deadline for bidders ended Jan. 19. Irish LCC Ryanair also reconfirmed interest in NIKI on Jan. 16.

IAG CEO Willie Walsh—who had planned to buy NIKI assets via its Spanish LCC subsidiary Vueling—had told ATW last week that if NIKI did not become part of IAG, “we will still grow organically with Vueling and establish a base in Vienna. “All our IAG member carriers are already operating into Austria,” he said before these latest developments.

IAG told ATW in an emailed statement the company “is disappointed that NIKI will not be able to develop and grow stronger as part of the group.”

NIKI was established in 2004 and in 2011 became a 100% airberlin subsidiary; in 2012, the airline became a oneworld member.

On Dec. 5, 2016, oneworld member airberlin sold 49.8% of NIKI to Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Investment Co. for €300 million.
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