Montreal, Quebec – March 11th, 2019 – Greenbriar Equity Group, L.P. (“Greenbriar”) and First Aviation Services Inc. (“FAvS”) today announced the acquisition of DART Aerospace (“DART” or “the Company”), a leading provider of mission equipment and aftermarket components for the helicopter and fixed-wing industries. DART has operated as a subsidiary of Eagle Copters Ltd. (“Eagle Copters”) and Era Group Inc. (“Era”) for over 10 years. The acquisition by Greenbriar and FAvS will be completed following customary closing conditions.
Noah Roy, Managing Partner of Greenbriar, comments: “DART is well recognized in the industry for its engineering-led culture of innovation and success developing critical aftermarket and OEM components to support customers worldwide. We look forward to supporting DART’s world-class management team and employees during this next chapter of the Company’s growth.”
“DART’s extensive product offering and expertise certifying flight-ready components provide an exciting opportunity for partnership with First Aviation. We share DART’s core values of solving customer challenges through engineering and quality execution. We see many opportunities to collaborate with DART to drive additional growth through our investment,” continues Aaron Hollander, Chairman and CEO at FAvS.
Alain Madore, President and CEO at DART, comments on the acquisition: “We would like to thank Eagle Copters and Era for their continuous support throughout these years. We are excited about this new relationship with Greenbriar and FAvS. They are both experienced investors in the aerospace industry and we are confident that their capital and expertise will play a crucial role in supporting DART as we continue to grow and expand our markets and capabilities.”
“Having had the privilege of being involved with DART since 2003, we have enjoyed seeing the Company successfully grow and develop a broad suite of market leading products and capabilities. It has been a great journey and I know that DART will continue to be a leader and innovator within the industry,” explains Mike O’Reilly, Director at Eagle Copters.
DART’s current management team will continue to lead the Company and it will continue to operate from its existing worldwide facility network.
Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Houlihan Lokey served as financial adviser to Era and Eagle Copters.
About DART Aerospace
DART provides industry-leading design, manufacturing and market-certified solutions for the helicopter and aerospace industry. With an impressive line-up of over 900 STC's and 4,500 products, DART offers a comprehensive portfolio of mission equipment and related services, replacement parts and tooling for civil and military operators, all major rotorcraft OEMs, completion centers and MR&O facilities. DART's key products include: flotation systems, landing gears, interior and exterior accessories, cargo expansion, external loads, cable cutters and filters. All this, in addition to extensive engineering capabilities and manufacturing centers delivering fast time-to-market solutions with superior customer support in over 120 countries worldwide. Additional information may be found at dartaerospace.com.
About Greenbriar Equity Group, L.P.
Founded in 1999, Greenbriar Equity Group is a private equity firm with over $3.5 billion of committed capital focused on investing in market-leading manufacturing and services businesses in partnership with proven management teams. Greenbriar looks to identify companies capitalizing on strong long-term growth prospects that can benefit from Greenbriar’s industry knowledge, operating capabilities, network of senior executive relationships, strategic insight and access to capital. Sectors of particular focus include aerospace and defense, industrial and business services, transportation and logistics, and specialty manufacturing. Additional information may be found at www.greenbriarequity.com.
About First Aviation Services, Inc.
First Aviation Services Inc. (FAvS), headquartered in Westport, Connecticut, is a leading provider of repair and overhaul, rotables management and related engineering services to the aviation industry worldwide. FAvS’s principal operating subsidiaries are Aerospace Turbine Rotables, Inc., Evōlution Aerospace, Inc.® and Piedmont Propulsion Systems, LLC. More information about FAvS and its subsidiaries may be found on the company’s website www.firstaviation.com.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
DART Aerospace
Email: kmartineau@dartaero.com
Greenbriar Equity Group
Mark Semer or Nathan Riggs
Kekst CNC
+1 (212) 521-4800
First Aviation Services Inc.
Joy Karageorge
Email: jkarageorge@firstaviation.com or first@firstaviation.com