BBA on Acquisition Trail Again

The parent company of Signature Flight Support, U.K.-based BBA Group, has been on the corporate aviation acquisition trail yet again -- this time buying four companies for $52.6 million in one month. This follows corporate and commercial aviation acquisitions of over $160 million in 2001.

Three of the four new acquisitions are U.S.-based FBOs: One was bought from Mercury Aviation of Bedford, Mass., for $15.5 million; a privately owned FBO in Savannah, Ga., cost BBA $5.6 million; and the third, recently announced, was the takeover of Air Kaman's FBO at Jacksonville, Fla., for $17 million. In addition, BBA bought Ontario Aircraft Services (OAS) for $14.5 million for its commercial aviation subsidiary ASIG.

With the Air Kaman FBO acquisition, Signature will inherit eight aircraft hangars, which will give them 180,000 square feet of aircraft storage space as well as office space. Jacksonville is one of the fastest growing business centers in the southeast United States and one of the 50 largest U.S. metropolitan cities by population. "The acquisition at Jacksonville further cements our strategy to build a network of Signature FBOs in the core metropolitan markets in the United States, where there is potential for steady growth and high margins," said Roy McGlone, BBA's chief executive.

This news follows from Signature's announcements at EBACE, Geneva in May that it was to pioneer a brand-new $2 million FBO at Toulon-Hyeres (the ex-French Naval Air Station) in the south of France in 2003 and expand also its London Luton hangarage space in 2003 at a cost of $7.5 million.

The Toulon FBO facility will be an exclusive Signature operation, and a temporary building structure will be operational next summer as will the private parking and independent road access. Phase II will include the building of a 30,128-square-foot hangar and office facility. The airport is roughly equidistant from Nice and Marcella (57 nm and 45 nm respectively).

Signature Flight Support's Europe managing director Jonathan Soper said, "Toulon-Hyeres airport has two intersecting runways, 6,232 feet and 7,019 feet, and all the large business jets, up to BBJ/ACJ, Boeing 727 size, will be able to operate safely. We have approval to accept incoming aircraft directly from the United States. We'll be looking to grow to at least 2,500 arrivals (not movements) over the next three to five years."

Soper said of the Luton progress, "Demolition of the old Hangar '125' is complete, and the newly acquired old hangar next to it has been flattened." The first of April 2003 is the completion date for the new 78,000-square-foot hangar, and after completion the company will be able to offer a total of over 120,000 square feet of hangarage and a large amount of new office space. "Plans are also in hand to improve and upgrade crew and passenger facilities within the current area," said Soper.

Trevor King, Signature Flight Support's Luton managing director, said, "Signature Luton is currently the U.K.'s busiest business aircraft transit location, with currently around 13,500 aircraft movements forecast for this year. Corporate aircraft movements are up by 264 for the first seven and a half months of this year," said King, "and fuel sales are tremendous because of the amount of BBJ, Gulfstream V and Global Express aircraft that we are now handling."

By Mike Vines