Global Airlines, the UK-based A380 startup that is the brainchild of entrepeuner James Asquith, was started with the goal of reinventing air travel and bringing it back to the golden age providing scheduled flights onboard an A380 super jumbo but could that all be about to change.
According to an article in Times Aerospace, which cites sources familiar with the subject, a Saudi backed investment group is poised to become a major investor in Global Airlines but with a view to it becoming an ACMI (Aircraft, Crew, Maintenance & Insurance) leasing operation.
The move would make Global Airlines the world’s first dedicated A380 wet-leasing company and according to the article, comes from a demand for wide body aircraft on short to medium term contracts for high density routes, particularly at times such as the Hajj pilgrimage.
The investment could also see Global Airlines acquire three more Airbus A380s. It currently has one sole A380, a former China Southern aircraft registered as 9H-GLOBL.
The investment company in question is reported to be Kingdom Holdings which is based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and was founded by HRH Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud, a member of the royal family of Saudi Arabia.
Kingdom Holdings already has a stake in Saudi low-cost airline, Flynas.
Global Airlines recently carried a pair of flights to New York from Glasgow and Manchester, well, actually it was Hi-Fly Malta that operated the flights as Global doesn’t have an AOC (Air Operators Certificate), but these were met with mixed reviews with a common theme of over promising and under delivering.
As such, there are still no plans for Global to begin scheduled service and no timeline on if or when it could be granted a UK AOC. All of which makes the ACMI model perhaps a sensible option for Mr Asquith to consider, particularly with Saudi backing giving it access to the lucrative Middle East and Africa markets.