Atlas Air becomes a minority investor in new UK cargo airline

The new cargo carrier has been set up in conjunction with entrepreneur John Porter. The company will initially provide aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance leases of Boeing 747 freighter aircraft to airlines in the UK and will begin operations out of London’s Stanstead Airport.

John Porter is the 51 per cent shareholder of Global with New York-based Atlas Air having the remaining 49 per cent interest. Mr Porter will provide the venture with start-up equity, with UK experience and business acumen, Atlas Air also contributing start-up equity and operating and commercial expertise.

According to Richard Shuyler, chief executive officer of Atlas Air, he claimed: “We are delighted to have a businessman of John Porter’s calibre taking both an ownership interest and an active role in this initiative, Atlas Air has a history of anticipating market trends, and we believe that the demand for low cost heavy air freight capacity in the UK will continue to grow.

He added, “With this investment, we are positioning ourselves to capitalise on that growth, while adapting to the changing regulatory environment in the UK.”