Aviation Technology
Wheels Up | September 26, 2023
Wheels Up Experience (NYSE: UP) today announced that it has closed the previously announced investment by Delta Air Lines, Certares Management LLC, Knighthead Capital Management LLC and Cox Enterprises.
The new investment structure combines the experience of Delta, the No. 1 premium airline, with the travel and tourism focus of Certares and turnaround and restructuring experience of Knighthead. It includes an agreement for a $500 million credit facility to Wheels Up, with funds contributed by Delta and CK Wheels LLC, which is co-managed by affiliates of Certares and Knighthead, and Cox. The announcement follows last week's selection of George Mattson as the company's new CEO.
"This investment represents both an important source of capital for Wheels Up to support our strategy for financial stability, future profitability and long-term growth on behalf of our members and customers, as well as a vote of confidence in our path forward from a group of investors with deep experience in the premium travel space," Mattson said. "We look forward to working closely with Delta and our other investors to deliver best-in-class operating performance and an exceptional customer experience which, as we deepen our commercial partnership, will also enable us to provide a one-of-a-kind seamless connection between private and premium commercial travel."
"Wheels Up is an integral part of Delta's portfolio of premium partners, and this deep relationship offers a significant opportunity to deliver compelling benefits to our customers that are unique in the travel space," said Dan Janki, Wheels Up Chairman and Delta's Chief Financial Officer. "This investment and new leadership puts Wheels Up on a strong path to future success."
The credit facility is comprised of a $350 million term loan funded at closing from Delta, CK Wheels LLC and Cox and a $100 million revolving credit facility from Delta. The terms of the credit agreement permit a new lender to provide a $50 million term loan after the closing date, as approved by Delta, Certares, Knighthead and Cox, and it is anticipated this additional funding will close in the near term.
In connection with the closing of the credit facility, the lenders will initially receive newly issued Wheels Up common stock representing 80% of the company's outstanding equity as of the closing of the credit facility, on a fully diluted basis. After approval by Wheels Up's stockholders of an amendment to its certificate of incorporation, the company will issue to the lenders additional new shares such that the lenders will own 95% of the company's outstanding equity as of the closing of the credit facility, on a fully diluted basis.
Wheels Up also announced a new structure for its Board of Directors. Under the new structure, Delta Air Lines will appoint four directors, Certares and Knighthead each will appoint two directors, and Cox will appoint one director. In addition, one company executive will join the Board and two independent directors are expected to remain from the previous Board.
The parties were assisted in the transaction by a number of strategic advisors, including: Davis Polk, Jefferies LLC, Kirkland & Ellis and PJT Partners.
About Wheels Up
Wheels Up is a leading provider of on-demand private aviation in the U.S. and one of the largest private aviation companies in the world. Wheels Up offers a complete global aviation solution with a large, modern, and diverse fleet, backed by an uncompromising commitment to safety and service. Customers can access membership programs, charter, aircraft management services and whole aircraft sales, as well as unique commercial travel benefits through a strategic partnership with Delta Air Lines. Wheels Up also offers freight, safety and security solutions and managed services to individuals, industry, government, and civil organizations.
Wheels Up is guided by the mission to connect private flyers to aircraft, and one another, through an open platform that seamlessly enables life's most important experiences. Powered by a global private aviation marketplace connecting its base of approximately 12,000 members and customers to a network of approximately 1,500 safety-vetted and verified private aircraft, Wheels Up is widening the aperture of private travel for millions of consumers globally. With the Wheels Up mobile app and website, members and customers have the digital convenience to search, book and fly.
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Aviation Technology
businesswire | September 14, 2023
H2FLY, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Joby Aviation, today announced the successful completion of the world’s first piloted flight of a liquid hydrogen-powered electric aircraft.
H2FLY, acquired by Joby in 2021, continues to lead the industry on the development and testing of hydrogen aviation propulsion systems. The company completed a series of piloted flights with its HY4 demonstrator aircraft, including one that lasted more than three hours, fitted with a hydrogen-electric fuel cell propulsion system and liquid hydrogen that powered it for the entire flight.
The flights demonstrate the viability of using cryogenically-stored liquid hydrogen instead of gaseous hydrogen, which enables significantly lower tank weights and volume, leading to longer range. The successful installation and demonstration of flight with liquid hydrogen is believed to increase the range of H2FLY’s HY4 demonstrator aircraft from 466 mi (750 km) to 932 mi (1500 km), marking a critical step towards the long-term decarbonization of mid- to long-range aviation.
“H2FLY are pioneers in their field, and we’re proud of them achieving this watershed moment in the use of liquid hydrogen to power aircraft,” said JoeBen Bevirt, Founder and CEO of Joby Aviation. “In the years to come, battery-electric and hydrogen-electric propulsion systems will enable us to build aircraft that are quieter and make mid- to long-range air travel possible with zero emissions. It’s critical we take action now and invest aggressively in these technologies for the health of our planet and future generations to come.”
The successful flights are the culmination of Project HEAVEN, a European-government-supported consortium assembled to demonstrate the feasibility of using liquid hydrogen in aircraft. The consortium is led by H2FLY and includes the partners Air Liquide, Pipistrel Vertical Solutions, the German Aerospace Center (DLR), EKPO Fuel Cell Technologies, and Fundación Ayesa.
Following this test flight milestone, H2FLY will increasingly focus on its path to commercialization. In June, H2FLY announced the development of its new fuel cell systems, which will be capable of providing their full power range at altitudes high enough to enable commercial hydrogen-electric aircraft, demonstrating real-world commercial aircraft applications.
About Joby
Joby Aviation, Inc. is a California-based transportation company developing an all-electric, vertical take-off and landing air taxi which it intends to operate as part of a fast, quiet, and convenient service in cities around the world.
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Defense and Space
Businesswire | July 06, 2023
Redwire Corporation ,a leader in space infrastructure for the next generation space economy, announced today that it is providing critical hardware set to launch onboard the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Euclid space telescope mission, which will create the largest, most accurate 3D map of the universe ever produced.
Redwire’s wholly owned Belgian subsidiary, Redwire Space NV, designed and manufactured the space telescope’s baffle, through a contract with Airbus, who is responsible for the telescope on behalf of Thales Alenia Space, prime contractor for ESA. This critical, mission-enabling hardware is a cylindrical structure that sits atop the telescope and prevents stray light from entering, ensuring image quality, and protects the spacecraft’s primary scientific instruments. The 1.4 billion euro Euclid mission represents contributions from over 13 ESA member states and NASA.
“We are proud to be contributing critical flight-proven capabilities to enable this groundbreaking ESA mission that will unlock new insights into the expansion of the universe and deliver valuable data for the global scientific community,” said Redwire Space NV Managing Director Erik Masure. “Redwire Europe continues to build on our impressive heritage of enabling large-scale exploration missions through world-class technologies, and we are grateful for the continued partnership with our customers and partners across Europe and globally.”
Through its expanded international operations, Redwire continues to be a critical mission partner for ESA and other international partners and missions, including ESA’s CHEOPS mission to study exoplanets and Proba-3, the world’s first precision formation flying mission.
About Redwire
Redwire Corporation is a global leader in mission critical space solutions and high reliability components for the next generation space economy, with valuable intellectual property for solar power generation, in-space 3D printing and manufacturing, avionics, critical components, sensors, digital engineering and space-based biotechnology. We combine decades of flight heritage with an agile and innovative culture. Our “Heritage plus Innovation” strategy enables us to combine proven performance with new, innovative capabilities to provide our customers with the building blocks for the present and future of space infrastructure.
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Aviation Technology
Sidus Space | August 23, 2023
Sidus Space a satellite manufacturing and space services company, announces its strategic acquisition of Exo-Space, a cutting-edge California-based firm specializing in Edge Artificial Intelligence (AI) software and hardware for space applications. This transaction signals Sidus's determination to tap into the growing AI sector and expand its offerings in the Earth and Space Observations services market.
Pursuant to the terms of the acquisition agreement Sidus has acquired Exo-Space's assets in a combination of cash, stock options, and performance bonus incentives in alignment with Sidus’ growth into an AI-enabled space services company. Exo-Space brings a current revenue stream of commercial and government contracts extending through 2025, as well as a pipeline of potential clients. The deal is projected to have a positive impact on Sidus's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA).
“This accretive acquisition expands our talent, technology, and total addressable market. Along with sales contracts and existing AI technology, the transaction includes the acquisition of Exo-Space’s collective experience in AI and machine learning.” said Carol Craig, Founder and CEO of Sidus Space. “This transaction provides the opportunity for us to enhance our presence in the Earth and Space Observations markets by providing actionable solutions for our customers' needs as opposed to just raw data. The integration of Exo-Space EdgeAI technology with Sidus’ sensors provides significant value and transformative potential across various domains.”
Exo-Space occupies a unique niche in the realm of U.S. owned Edge AI computing, concentrating on both software and hardware solutions for space assets that utilize faster processing speeds. Exo-Space’s current operations complement Sidus’ established U.S. DoD/Intelligence relationships.
Jared Novick, Senior Vice President of Strategy & Special Projects, added, “Exo-Space’s combination of space hardened hardware and resilient software made this an attractive acquisition in creation of value to both our customers and shareholders.” He also added, “The concept of offering customers a special "rideshare" opportunity with a software platform to upload, change, and improve analytics of payloads onboard is a forward-thinking and innovative approach. This idea aligns with the increasing demand for flexibility and customization in satellite missions and data collection.”
Sidus believes the acquisition of Exo-Space will seamlessly integrate stand-alone AI and machine learning products into Sidus' business lines, with the ability to market the hardware for third-party purchase. A distinguishing feature of Exo-Space's solution is its adaptability, designed to smoothly integrate the latest processor advancements. Proprietary hardware-agnostic software allows this flexibility. The synergy between Sidus’ satellite constellation, Edge Computing, and AI platform is expected to deliver substantial enhancements in leveraging space-based data.
Jeremy Allam, Chief Executive Officer of Exo-Space, commented, “By joining the Sidus team and integrating our AI capabilities into LizzieSat, we can now better deliver the benefits of space-based AI to more customers and on a shorter timeline than was previously possible.”
Sidus believes this strategic acquisition solidifies Sidus Space's position as a frontrunner in the space technology sector, poised to leverage AI advancements to revolutionize the acquisition and utilization of space-derived data.
Sidus has issued non-qualified stock option awards to purchase an aggregate of 3,955,212 shares of Class A common stock to certain former employees of Exo-Space. The stock options were granted as inducements material to the new employees becoming employees of Sidus in accordance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4). The options have an exercise price of $0.16 per share, which is equal to the closing price of Sidus’ Class A common stock on August 21, 2023. Each option will vest over a 4-year period, subject to the employee’s continued employment with Sidus on such vesting dates. Notwithstanding the foregoing vesting conditions, no portion of the options shall be exercisable prior to the second (2nd) anniversary of the date of grant.
About Sidus Space
Sidus Space is a Space Data-as-a-Service satellite company focused on mission-critical hardware manufacturing; multi-disciplinary engineering services; satellite design, production, launch planning, mission operations; and in-orbit support. The Company is located in Cape Canaveral, Florida, where it operates from a 35,000-square-foot manufacturing, assembly, integration, and testing facility focused on vertically integrated Space-as-a-Service solutions including end-to-end satellite support.
Sidus Space has a mission of Bringing Space Down to Earth™ and a vision of enabling space flight heritage status for new technologies while delivering data and predictive analytics to domestic and global customers. Any corporation, industry, or vertical can start their journey off-planet with Sidus Space’s rapidly scalable, low-cost satellite services, space-based solutions, and testing alternatives. More than just a “Satellite-as-a-Service” provider, Sidus Space is a trusted Mission Partner–from concept to Low Earth Orbit and beyond. Sidus Space is ISO 9001:2015, AS9100 Rev. D certified, and ITAR registered.
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