ACA announces the acquisition of Unijet's handling activity at Le Bourget, Europe's leading business aviation airport

Press release

Issued on: 26 March 2015

Aéroports de la Côte d’Azur Group (ACA) announced the acquisition of 100% of the share capital of Unijet Handling from Unijet, acquired by the Luxaviation Group last year. Unijet Handling, since renamed Sky Valet France, provides aircraft landing at Le Bourget with full handling services, parking facilities, waiting and work lounges, flight preparation rooms and rest facilities for pilots.

Presented at last year's EBACE trade show, Sky Valet, the ACA brand specialising in providing comprehensive ground handling services to business aircraft and Fixed Base Operators (FBOs) operating exclusively at the Cannes Mandelieu and Golfe de Saint-Tropez airports, is now also present at Europe's leading business aviation airport: Paris - Le Bourget. Sky Valet's presence in Paris - Le Bourget, as well as at Cannes Mandelieu and Saint-Tropez, strengthens ACA's position as second-ranked European business aviation group, with 46,000 movements in 2014.

With today's acquisition of the handling activities of Unijet –one of the leaders in business aviation, and the sector's oldest French company, created in 1967– ACA marks a new strategic stage in the development of its General Aviation activity. Sky Valet thus joins the very select club of handling operators present at Le Bourget and will be offering its services in a new stronghold of business aviation.

For Dominique Thillaud, Chairman of the Board of Aéroports de la Côte d’Azur, "It is important for ACA's development of Business Aviation to be present at the key stops, and Paris – Le Bourget is Europe's leading airport in the sector. Business aviation operators, pilots and passengers turning to Sky Valet will benefit from comprehensive handling services and a similar range of high-end services wherever we operate. At Le Bourget we now have an entirely new dedicated terminal, which makes the perfect platform for solid international growth."

Michel Tohane, Director of the General Aviation Business Unit of Aéroports de la Côte d’Azur, added that "Sky Valet at Le Bourget brings together the key features our clients seek: a location, a high level of service and a networked ranked among Europe's top two business aviation groups. This move is consistent with the strategy to develop the General Aviation activities, initiated in 2013 with the acquisition of the Golfe de Saint-Tropez airport."

Patrick Hansen, Co-CEO Luxaviation group, said "In Sky Valet we have a partner with whom we can build a long-term relationship, based on shared values - quality and growth."

Dannys Famin, Unijet Board of Directors Chairman, provides details on the sale of the FBO: "The partnership with Sky Valet will enable Unijet, an operator of the Luxaviation group since 2014, to focus on handling of business aircraft and to continue to provide excellent service to our international customers."