Three companies acquired by Wheels Up as part of its Air Partner acquisition have been sold for $20 million.
Baines Simmons, Kenyon International Emergency Services, and Redline Assured Security have all been sold by Wheels Up.
The price was “approximately $20 million in proceeds before transaction-related expenses.”
The Delta Air Lines-backed flight provider said it would “reinvest the net proceeds from the sale to further its ongoing fleet modernization strategy and for general corporate purposes.”
Wheels Up CEO George Mattson said, “The divestiture of these non-core services businesses is the latest in a series of steps that Wheels Up has taken to sharpen our strategic focus; invest in our product, fleet, and operations; and strengthen our balance sheet.”
He added, “The sale, along with our recently announced initiatives estimated to drive approximately $50 million of cost efficiencies, is expected to create meaningful tailwinds on our path to sustained, profitable growth.”
The buyer was not disclosed.
The trio of companies came to Wheels Up as part of its 2022 acquisition of Air Partner.
That was the last of a half-dozen acquisitions starting with TMC Jets in 2019.
Wheels Up previously divested itself of several other start-ups and acquisitions.
In 2023, it sold its aircraft management business to Airshare.
Avianis, its technology platform, was licensed to Portside in July 2023.
It also sold its aircraft brokerage to management in January 2024.
Despite the divestitures, Air Partner’s charter brokers have become a core part of the Delta-led turnaround strategy.
That strategy includes selling programmatic and on-demand private flights to the airline’s corporate accounts and high-yield leisure travelers.
Wheels Up originally paid $107 million for Air Partner, including the units that have now been sold.
Earlier this month, Wheels Up said it was looking for more savings as it seeks to reach profitability.
It is in the process of moving to a fleet of Phenom 300s and Challenger 300s to complement its King Air turboprops.
Wheels Up ranked fourth in terms of U.S. charter and fractional flight hours last year.
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