Stobart Group still plans airline exit despite Aer Lingus franchise setback

Stobart Group still intends to divest its regional operator Stobart Air by the end of the financial year, despite Aer Lingus’s deciding not to renew a franchise agreement with the company. Aer Lingus has been using Stobart Air for regional connections for several years and Stobart Group had aimed to enhance the attractiveness of the carrier to a potential buyer by sealing a long-term agreement with Aer Lingus beyond 2022. But the plan has suffered a setback after Aer Lingus informed Stobart Group that it would not be the preferred supplier for a new commercial agreement. The agreement would have started in 2023, with Stobart Air continuing to operate the Aer Lingus franchise until that point. Stobart Group insists the Aer Lingus decision “does not alter” its intention to divest the airline, and leasing company Propius, “as soon as it is practicable”, with chief executive Warwick Brady still aiming for a sale “before the end of the current financial year”. Brady admits the Aer Lingus decision is “disappointing” but says Stobart Group remains in “positive discussions” over the airline with “a number of interested parties”.<br/>