Sun Country Airlines (SY, Minneapolis St. Paul International) has been sold to funds affiliated with New York-based private equity firm Apollo Global Management, LLC.
In a statement issued late last week, Apollo said it had now signed a definitive agreement to acquire Minnesota-based Sun Country Airlines from brothers Marty and Mitch Davis for an undisclosed sum. The transaction, which is subject to regulatory approvals and other customary conditions, is targeted to close during the first quarter of 2018.
Despite the change in ownership, Jude Bricker will remain CEO of Sun Country.
“We are tremendously excited about the acquisition of Sun Country,” Antoine Munfakh, Partner at Apollo, said. “Sun Country presents compelling opportunities for innovation, efficiency and growth. Underpinned by a solid foundation of assets and people, including an outstanding team of executives and talented flight crews, we believe Sun Country has a very bright future. We look forward to supporting CEO Jude Bricker in delivering the next chapter of Sun Country’s growth through the combination of operational excellence and the relentless pursuit of delivering customer service and value.”
The largest privately-held wholly-independent carrier in the United States, Sun Country Airlines operates six B737-700s and twenty B737-800s on scheduled passenger flights to thirty-eight destinations across the US as well as to Aruba, Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico.
On the back of intensifying revenue pressure, Bricker announced in September that Sun Country would gradually adopt an ultra-low-cost operating model through the densification of its fleet's seat configurations, the phasing out of its B737-700s in favour of more -800s, the introduction of ancillary services, and the expansion of its network beyond its Minneapolis St. Paul International hub.
