The deal will expand CAE’s reach beyond pilot training
Montreal-based CAE Inc. has agreed to acquire Sabre Corporation’s AirCentre airline operations portfolio, valued at approximately $484.5 million.
CAE provides training and support services in civil aviation, defense, security and healthcare. The deal comes right on the heels of the company’s announcement of a $1-billion innovation program called Project Resilience, which aims to develop digitally immersive solutions leveraging data and artificial intelligence in civil aviation. The acquisition of AirCentre will expand CAE’s reach beyond pilot training and allow the company to strengthen its digitally enabled flight and crew operations solutions.
Marc Parent, CAE's president and CEO, said “This transaction will mark the ninth accretive acquisition for CAE since the COVID-19 pandemic began, further effecting the company's intent to emerge from the pandemic larger, more resilient, and more profitable.” CAE has also recently acquired Merlot and RB Group in a bid to pioneer the development of a digital flight operations ecosystem.
Sabre Corporation is a Texas-based travel software and technology company. Its AirCentre Operations business provides software solutions to more than 150 airline customers, with services that include crew flight, movement and airport management and in-flight support. In 2019, AirCentre generated approximately $185 million in revenue. Under the deal, CAE will acquire AirCentre’s product portfolio, related technology, intellectual property and workforce.
"Sabre's AirCentre business is highly valued by many of the world's leading airlines, nearly all of whom are customers of CAE today. This acquisition will significantly expand CAE's capabilities across a large airline customer base and allows us to deliver on our objective to help our civil aviation customers operate their businesses with the highest levels of efficiency and precision,” said Parent.
Sean Menke, Sabre’s president and CEO added, "This divestiture is an important strategic move that will allow us to focus on our forward-looking plans and on accelerating our growth as we continue to transform our business and build on our strong momentum over the past three years." The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2022.
Norton Rose Fulbright is acting on behalf of CAE, with a team in Montreal led by Peter Riddell and including Mathieu Deschamps, Derek Chiasson, Nikita Stepin, Julia Godolphin, Pierre-Francois Tetreault, Antonino Gentile, Audrey Levesque, Stephanie Thibert, Sean Cohen, Bianca Pietracupa, Stephanie Fontana, Henri Lajeunesse and Chanel Provost.
