AirX Charter (AX, Malta International) has closed a Series A funding round, raising approximately USD35 million to acquire four additional aircraft, according to its chairman, John Matthews. He says the newly acquired aircraft, which will include a Challenger 850, Legacy 600s, and likely a Challenger 605, will undergo a three-month programme of interior upgrades and repainting before joining the AirX fleet.
"The funding reflects strong investor confidence in AirX’s growth trajectory, as we seek to capitalise on increasing demand for charter not in the sector but in our business model," he said. "AirX is also preparing for a significantly larger Series B funding round, with discussions already underway with three potential funding partners."
Series B is being managed from New York and opens next week, Matthews told ch-aviation, adding: "Early talks and high level pilot talks has generated significant interest. Four are parties interested in term sheet discussions before or shortly after the New Year, we are seeing commitments ranging from USD90 million to USD195 million."
Series B aims to provide AirX Charter with an additional 20 aircraft, placing the company at an annualised EUR550 million euros (USD578 million) in revenue and EUR80 million (USD84 million) EBITDA with well over EUR30 million (USD31.5 million) in net cash generation a year.
"We have the largest institutional players pitching for the onboarding for the debt raises and are considering which path to take," he said. "This latest round of investment marks a pivotal moment for AirX as it continues to challenge established debt-fuelled players in the sector by focusing on operational and deployed capital efficiency."
According to ch-aviation fleets data, AirX Charter operates 17 aircraft, including one A340-300, one B737-700(BBJ), seven Challenger 850s, three Legacy 600s, and five Embraer Lineage 1000s. As previously noted by ch-aviation, AirX Charter owns all of its aircraft, a strategy it considers crucial to its business model.
