SEATTLE, 5 April 2016. Officials at Alaska Air Group Inc. (NYSE:ALK), parent company of Alaska Airlines, bid to acquire Virgin America Inc. (NASDAQ: VA) and won. Alaska Air Group will acquire Virgin America under a unanimously approved definitive merger agreement valued at approximately $4.0 billion.
Alaska Airlines officials expect the acquisition to deliver an expanded West Coast presence, a larger customer base, and an enhanced platform for growth, as well as to position the company to provide more choices for customers, increase competition, and deliver attractive returns to investors.
The combined company expects to achieve $225 million annually in total net synergies at full integration. The combined airline is projected to have annual revenues of more than $7 billion.
In 2015, Alaska Air Group achieved a record full-year adjusted net income of $842 million, which increased 47 percent over 2014. Alaska Airlines also grew passenger revenues by 5 percent year-over-year, and has increased dividend payments 175 percent since initiation in 2013. In 2015, Alaska Airlines added 20 new markets and 10 new cities to its growing network and 11 new aircraft. As of March 31, 2016, Alaska Airlines had $1.6 billion in unrestricted cash and short-term investments.
Since its successful IPO in 2014, Virgin America has reached a number of milestones, most recently reporting a record annual year-over-year net income of $201 million, an increase of 139 percent in FY 2015, the highest in company history. In 2015, Virgin America also outperformed the industry in domestic unit revenue growth and began growing the airline with 10 new aircraft deliveries.
The combined organization will be based in Seattle.
The merger, which has been approved unanimously by the boards of directors of both companies, is conditioned on receipt of regulatory clearance, approval by Virgin America shareholders, and satisfaction of other customary closing conditions. The companies expect to complete the transaction with regulators' approval no later than 1 Jan. 2017.
What people are saying:
"Today's merger announcement of two great airlines coming together provides both pilot groups with an outstanding opportunity to benefit from the growth of the expanded Alaska Airlines' route network," says Captain Chris Notaro, chairman of the Alaska Airlines MEC of the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA). "We would like to welcome the professional pilots of Virgin America to the Alaska family and we look forward to a common goal of building a new joint pilot group that will benefit from a stronger and more prosperous airline that we have helped build." "Alaska Airlines and Virgin America are both known for providing an exceptional in-flight experience, thanks in large part to the dedication of our respective flight attendants," says Jeffrey Peterson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA Master Executive Council at Alaska Airlines. "The combination of these two award-winning airlines provides an exciting opportunity for our members and for the Virgin America flight attendants, or Inflight Team Members. We look forward to joining together and building on our legacies of customer satisfaction to the benefit of both companies' passengers." "Our employees have worked hard to earn the deep loyalty of customers in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, while the Virgin America team has done the same in California. Together we will continue to deliver what customers tell us they want: low fares, unmatched reliability and outstanding customer service," says Brad Tilden, chairman and CEO of Alaska Air Group. "With our expanded network and strong presence in California, we'll offer customers more attractive flight options for nonstop travel. We look forward to bringing together two incredible groups of employees to build on the successes they have achieved as standalone companies to make us an even stronger competitor nationally." "Our mission has always been to create an airline that people love – and we accomplished that while changing the industry for the better. Joining forces with Alaska Airlines will ensure that our mission lives on, and that the stronger, combined company will continue to be a great place to work and an airline that focuses on an outstanding travel experience,” David Cush, Virgin America president and CEO says.
Airline industry accolades:
Alaska Airlines has been ranked #1 among the nine largest carriers in the United States by The Wall Street Journal for overall operational performance for three years in a row, while Virgin America has placed #2 in the same study for the past two years.
Virgin America has been voted "Best Domestic Airline" in both Travel + Leisure's Annual World's Best Awards and Conde Nast Traveler's Readers' Choice Awards for the past eight consecutive years.
Alaska Airlines has been ranked "Highest in Customer Satisfaction Among Traditional Carriers" by J.D. Power for eight years running, and has been ranked #1 for on-time performance six years in a row by FlightStats.
Virgin America has been rated #1 for the past three years in the annual Airline Quality Rating report, an annual study of U.S. domestic airline performance based on public data submitted to the Department of Transportation and conducted by professors at Wichita State University and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
Alaska Airlines has been named the most fuel-efficient airline by the International Council on Clean Technology for the last six years.
The combined airline will retain its safety-centric, employee-focused culture:
Alaska Airlines and Virgin America both have been named among America's ‘best employers' by Forbes, which annually ranks 500 U.S. companies based on responses to a survey of American workers.
Both Alaska Airlines and Virgin America are listed on the International Air Transport Association's Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) registry, the globally recognized benchmark for the airline industry. Alaska Airlines has been on the registry for 10 years and Virgin America has qualified for six years.
Alaska Airlines expects that Virgin America's Pilots, Inflight Teammates, Guest Services Teammates, and maintenance technicians will be protected in the combination.
Together, the combined airline will have:
1,200 daily departures, with hubs in Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Anchorage, Alaska, and Portland, Oregon.
Approximately 280 aircraft, which include regional planes, with an average age of 8.5 years.
Virgin America's fleet of 60 Airbus A319 and A320 aircraft boast three classes of service, in-flight WiFi and power outlets on every flight, as well as personal, touch-screen seatback entertainment.
Following closing, Alaska Airlines will welcome Virgin America Elevate loyalty program members into its Mileage Plan, ranked #1 by U.S. News and World Report. With Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan, members are able to redeem award miles for travel to more than 900 destinations worldwide, rivaling global alliances. Until the transaction closes, both loyalty programs will remain distinct – with no short-term impact on members. Upon closing, the programs will be merged. Alaska Airlines is committed to ensuring that loyalty members of both airlines maintain the same high-value rewards they've come to enjoy in both programs – with access to an even larger network.
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