It was back on the 22nd May that British Airways` Chief Executive Rod Eddington disclosed that a buyer had been found for Go, the BA budget subsidiary.
As of yesterday, Go is a subsidiary no longer, having been bought by venture capitalists 3i.
BA said that it would receive £80 million (EUR130m, $112m) in cash, £20 million (EUR33m, $28m) in vendor notes and a potential deferred payment of £10 million (EUR16.5m, $14m) in the event of Go being sold by 3i within five years.
“The deal represents an excellent return on our initial £25 million investment in the airline three years ago,” Mr Eddington said in a statement, although many analysts feel that Go has been sold off too cheaply.
British Airways is pursuing plans to reduce the amount of lower-priced seats and focus on business passengers.
Reuters reports that Barbara Cassini, chief executive of Go, and other members of the management team would keep their jobs, with 19 of its senior managers investing their own money in the company, Go said. Another 750 employees of Go will be offered share options. “In total, 22.5% of the business will belong to current and future employees,” Go said in a separate statement. Go`s web site was judged to be the fastest UK holiday site in terms of response times in a survey issued last month.
——-