50 SKY SHADES - World aviation news

$115 Million Capital Injection Boosts Wheels Up

Download: Printable PDF Date: 28 Sep 2015 13:30 (UTC) category:
Publisher:
$115 Million Capital Injection Boosts Wheels Up - Business aviation publisher
Tatjana Obrazcova
Source: AIN

A group of financial institutions led by T. Rowe Price this morning announced a $115 million capital injection for private flight membership program Wheels Up. The investment is backed by Fidelity Management and Research Company and NEA, and, according to a statement from the two-year old company, values it at $500 million.

Wheels Up founder and CEO Kenny Dichter said that the new funds will support further expansion of the company’s U.S. operations, as well as its plan to begin operations in Europe and the development of new technology platforms, such as its Wheels App member-to-member flight sharing feature.

With flights operated for it by Gama Aviation, the Wheels Up fleet now includes 45 Beechcraft King Air 350i twin turboprops and 10 Cessna Citation Excel/XLS jets. As of late September, Wheels Up membership totaled 1,600.

“We believe Wheels Up has the rare combination of experienced entrepreneurs, business model innovation and a strong financial model,” said Henry Ellenbogen, portfolio manager at T. Rowe Price. “Wheels Up has developed network density and provides real customer value. It has the potential to be a much larger company,” said Henry Ellenbogen, portfolio manager at T. Rowe Price.





Recommended

Emirates opens the door to a memorable Dubai winter

As Dubai prepares for another vibrant winter season, Emirates is inviting travellers from across its global network to discover the city with unparalleled comfort, convenience and exceptional value. L...

FLYONE Armenia orders two Airbus A321neo

FLYONE Armenia, the country’s leading airline, has finalised an order with Airbus for two A321neo aircraft, marking a significant milestone in its fleet modernisation strategy. The agreement was...

German aviation reaches new milestone as Deutsche Aircraft opens D328eco® Final Assembly Line

A new era for German aerospace began today as Deutsche Aircraft officially opened its Final Assembly Line (FAL) at Leipzig/Halle Airport. Joined by senior government representatives Christian Hirte an...

flydubai becomes first airline to launch scheduled international flights to Pokhara

flydubai has expanded its Nepal network with the launch of daily direct flights between Dubai and Pokhara, marking the first-ever non-stop service linking Dubai with western Nepal. The new route makes...

Android Apps development in Riga, Latvia