Fractional Ownership News
Ex NetJets boss Santulli returns to aviation sector
Richard Santulli, former NetJets boss and widely regarded as the founder of the fractional jet industry, has returned to the aviation sector with the launch of Milestone Aviation Group.
The company describes itself as the first global specialty finance company focused exclusively on the helicopter and private jet markets, and today announced that it has secured US$500 million of equity capital commitments to launch its business. U.S. middle-market private equity firm The Jordan Company led the investor team, in partnership with Nautic Partners.
Santulli, who founded RTS Helicopters before starting NetJets, will serve as chairman of Milestone’s board of directors.
“Milestone brings together my experience in helicopters, private jets and finance to address an important and underserved market niche,” said Santulli. “Starting a new business when I see a marketplace opportunity is what I love to do. Today, many good helicopter operators worldwide cannot get access to capital despite a demand for their services. At Milestone, we believe the quality of an operator should be defined by more than just its balance sheet.”
“No one knows this industry better than Richard Santulli and the Milestone team,” said John W. Jordan II, Chairman and Managing Principal of The Jordan Company. “We couldn’t imagine a more highly qualified partner for this deeply compelling market opportunity. In the future, I suspect that people will point to Milestone as yet another example of this management team’s visionary leadership.”
Headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, Milestone will provide aircraft owners and operators worldwide with personalised financing options not otherwise available. The Company offers 100% financing on new, pre-owned and sale-leaseback transactions. Customers select their own aircraft and, following a credit review process of three to five days, Milestone purchases the aircraft and enters into a lease agreement with the customer. Customers operate the leased aircraft and cover all operating costs without bearing residual risk.
“Our entire management team has experience in running an aviation company, which helps us uniquely understand our customers’ needs,” said William Kelly, Milestone’s chief executive officer who most recently was the CEO of NetJets Europe. “We understand safety, flight operations and maintenance. We believe it is important to look beyond a company’s capital structure into the hangar and cockpit to evaluate the true quality of an operator.”
www.milestoneaviation.com
05/08/10
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