The Vacation Lines tourism group will invest 3 million dollars in the Cypriot airline TUS Airways, for approximately 33% of its shares. After the deal is completed, each of the investors – Global Leasing, Woolley and Vacation Lines will hold equal shares in TUS. As part of the transaction, Kavi Vavena will take a substantial part in the ongoing management and implementation of the strategy of TUS.
The Vacation Lines company already owns the Greek airline Blue Bird, and with the completion of the deal it becomes an even more significant body in the Israeli aviation industry, after the companies El Al, Arkia, and Vishayair. This is not a merger of the two companies, but it is clear that there will be strategic cooperation between them. TUS’ fleet has 5 Airbus aircraft, and Blue Bird’s fleet has 3 Boeing 737 aircraft.
The Vacation Lines Group, owned by Ami Cohen and Arnon Englander, is one of the largest groups in Israel in the field of tourism and recreation. The group markets holiday packages abroad and operates flights to holiday destinations in the Mediterranean basin and Europe. The group also includes the 90th minute company, and the Blik tourism website.
Ami Cohen, one of the owners of the Vacation Lines Group, said: “I am happy to cooperate with the American businessman Kenneth Woolley and the owner of the American airline Eastern, with the Wings Group and also with the esteemed management of Global Leasing, and believe that their extensive experience in the field, including the extensive relationships of Global leasing with global airlines will help a lot to realize the commercial opportunities facing TUS. TUS is a foreign airline with a European license, and I see a lot of potential in it, part of which can be realized through synergy with the activities of the Vacation Lines Group, and the possibility of creating a significant growth engine for both parties in the coming years.”
Sidney Selsky, CEO of Global Wings, said: “The entry of the Vacation Lines Group to invest in TUS is an expression of confidence on the part of a dominant and experienced player in the field of tourism and recreation in Israel in the business potential and growth capacity of TUS in the coming years, in particular against the background of the war and the challenges of the current situation in the aviation industry and tourism in Israel. We believe that combining the experience and expertise of Global Leasing, with the commercial and marketing experience of the Vacation Lines Group, will allow us to face the existing challenges and optimally leverage the existing infrastructure and assets at TUS, as a European airline. We believe that the cooperation between the parties, and the return on the investment, along with the operational efficiency and expense reduction measures undertaken by TUS, will enable the reduction of operational and commercial risks in the near future. We look forward to working together to achieve the business goals we have set for ourselves, at the same time as the recovery of the industry and a gradual return to the routine of regular activities in the aviation and tourism industry in Israel.”
Completion of the investment transaction is subject to regulatory approvals. The transaction was supervised on behalf of TUS by attorneys Omer Shalu and Uri Mor Yosef from Gross Ored Shalimoff & Co. On behalf of Vacation Lines, lawyers Yigal Borochovsky and Ofer Pick from the Borochovsky & Co. office supervised the transaction.
Photo by Elad Weinstein
