Another milestone has been reached in the planned USD2.9 billion acquisition process of Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings – the parent of cargo carrier Atlas Air (5Y, New York JFK) - by an investor group led by funds managed by affiliates of New York private equity firm Apollo Global Management.

Shareholders of Atlas Air Worldwide on November 29 voted overwhelmingly in favour of the company's pending acquisition by the consortium, which also includes New York-based private equity investor J.F. Lehman & Company and Boston-based Hill City Capital.

The company expects to complete the transaction in the first quarter of 2023, subject to customary closing conditions and receipt of regulatory approvals. Upon closing, Atlas Air Worldwide will de-list from the Nasdaq stock exchange.

The deal was previously unanimously approved by the Atlas board of directors. Some 99.3% of shareholders approved the merger representing about 81% of outstanding shares.

"We are pleased to receive overwhelming support from Atlas Air Worldwide shareholders, who recognise this transaction provides compelling value to them while giving us the opportunity to execute our strategic plan," said John Dietrich, President and Chief Executive Officer of Atlas Air Worldwide. "This is another step forward to completing the transaction as we advance our leadership in airfreight and deliver high-quality services to our customers around the world."

Atlas Air Worldwide is also the parent of Titan Aviation Holdings and the majority shareholder of Polar Air Cargo (PO, New York JFK). Together with Atlas Air, the companies operate a fleet of B747 freighters and B747, B777, B767, and B737 aircraft for domestic, regional, and international cargo and passenger operations.

Atlas recently took delivery of a B777-200F, the first of four to be operated exclusively for Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) under the new MSC Air Cargo brand. It has also taken the last three remaining B747-8Fs from Boeing.

The investment in Atlas Air Holdings expands the aviation portfolio at Apollo, which also owns stakes in Sun Country Airlines (SY, Minneapolis St. Paul International) and airport service provider Swissport. Both Atlas and Sun Country provide cargo aircraft to Amazon.com's carrier Amazon Air. Other Atlas Air customers include Boeing, FedEx, and MotoGP.