FLOPS SOLD? Fact or Fiction!

[minimums]

Smack from the former RTA Union Board! Anyone have any first hand knowledge of this latest chicken little story?

Quote:



******NEWS FLASH*******

WE HAVE BEEN SOLD

Hang on to your hats boys and girls the ride is about to start. This will all be officially announced in late Feb but the unofficial cat is out of the bag.

We will be owned by the Carlyle Group. A large investment group with US offices in DC. Do a Google search and and see who they are and who the own.

A few other little tidbits of information to come later after a little investigation.

Stay tuned

 

[Diesel]

what's the message board's address?

 

[hawkercpt]

As I have said before...

I will believe it when I see it.

 

[Publishers]

They own Piedmont Hawthorne and recently completed the purchase of Garrett and some Mercury FBO's. In addition, they own Gemini Air Cargo I believe.

 

[gunfyter]

At least you won't be stapled to the bottom of any seniority lists...

 

[FLOPSwife]

No Chicken Little Here....

Smack from the former RTA Union Board! Anyone have any first hand knowledge of this latest chicken little story?

Don't know if it's true, but if you've done any valid research about the allegedly "buying" company, you would not think "the sky is falling." This would probably be the best thing that ever happened to any of the frac companies.
-------------------------------------------------------------------

The Carlyle Group

1. What is The Carlyle Group?

The Carlyle Group is a global private equity firm with more than $18.9 billion under management. Carlyle generates extraordinary returns for its investors by employing a conservative, proven, and disciplined approach. Carlyle invests in buyouts, real estate, leveraged finance and venture in Asia, Europe and North America, focusing on aerospace & defense, automotive & transportation, consumer & retail, energy & power, healthcare, industrial, technology & business services, and telecommunications & media. Since 1987, the firm has invested more than $12.4 billion. The Carlyle Group employs more than 500 people in offices in 14 countries. In the aggregate, Carlyle portfolio companies have more than $31 billion in revenue and employ more than 151,000 people around the world. Visit www.carlyle.com for additional information.

Back to the top

2. Is The Carlyle Group a lobbying or consulting firm?

No, The Carlyle Group is strictly an investment firm.

Back to the top

3. Is The Carlyle Group a defense contractor?

No. Carlyle is an investment firm. Carlyle makes investments in eight different sectors, from automotive and transportation to healthcare and defense. Carlyle's defense investments constitute around 1 percent of our assets under management.

Back to the top

4. Who owns The Carlyle Group?

Carlyle is a private partnership, which means that it is owned by a group of individuals, most of whom are managing directors at Carlyle, and one institution, CalPERS, which owns 5.5 percent of Carlyle. CalPERS is the California Public Employees Retirement System, one of the largest institutional investors in the world. The companies and real estate Carlyle buys and the companies it invests venture capital in are owned by the funds that invested in the companies.

Back to the top

5. How is the firm structured?

Carlyle, with more than 500 employees, is based in Washington, DC and has offices in 14 countries. Day to day management of the organization is conducted by its three Co-founders and Managing Directors, William E. Conway, Jr., Daniel A. D’Aniello and David M. Rubenstein. Carlyle’s Chairman is Louis V. Gerstner, its Chairman Emeritus is Frank C. Carlucci and it has 90+ managing directors and nearly 300 investment professionals. One of the reasons Carlyle has a large staff is because many of the roles other private equity firms contract out are done in-house at Carlyle, including, fundraising, accounting oversight, deal sourcing and due diligence and various back office duties.

Back to the top

6. Does Carlyle have a political action committee or contribute money to candidates for public office?

No. Carlyle does not contribute any money to any person running for office or any political organization. Carlyle staff acting on their own behalf are free to do so.

Back to the top

7. What do the former government officials affiliated with Carlyle do; are they paid; do they lobby their former government colleagues?

We are proud to have some of the most talented people in the world working at Carlyle. Our investment professionals come from the ranks of the best business, law and medical schools and have worked at many of the premier investment firms in the world, including Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Warburg Pincus, and JP Morgan Chase. All of our employees and advisors are compensated, however that is each individual’s personal business and we do not disclose that information.

Several former government officials are also affiliated with Carlyle. Each has different responsibilities and is a valued member of the Carlyle team. None of them lobbies his former government colleagues. This is who they are and what they do:

James A. Baker III: Former U.S. Secretary of State; Carlyle Senior Counselor. Mr. Baker gives strategic advice on Carlyle business matters and gives speeches at Carlyle events.

Frank C. Carlucci: Former U.S. Secretary of Defense; Chairman Emeritus of Carlyle. Mr. Carlucci provides strategic business advice to Carlyle management and investment professionals.

Richard G. Darman: Former Director of the Office of Management and Budget; Senior Advisor and Managing Director. Mr. Darman advises Carlyle senior management on strategic business matters; works on a range of venture capital and energy investments; and advises Carlyle investment professionals worldwide on venture capital activities.

William E. Kennard: Former Chairman of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission; Managing Director in the Telecommunications & Media Group. Mr. Kennard works on telecommunications & media acquisitions and advises Carlyle investment professionals worldwide on telecommunications buyout and venture activities.

Arthur Levitt: Former Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission; Carlyle Senior Advisor. Mr. Levitt advises Carlyle management on strategic business matters.

Thomas F. McLarty: Former Chief of Staff to President Bill Clinton; Carlyle Senior Advisor. Mr. McLarty advises Carlyle management on strategic business matters.

Charles O. Rossotti: Former Commissioner of Internal Revenue; Carlyle Senior Advisor. Mr. Rossotti advises Carlyle on information technology-related buyout and venture investments.

Luis Téllez: Former Mexico Secretary of Energy; Managing Director and Co-head of Carlyle Mexico Partners. Mr. Téllez conducts investment activities in Mexico.

Back to the top

8. Is former President George H.W. Bush affiliated with The Carlyle Group?

No. From April 1998 to October 2003 former President Bush was the Senior Advisor to the Carlyle Asia Advisory Board. He holds no other positions at Carlyle.

Back to the top

9. Is former Philippines President Fidel Ramos affiliated with The Carlyle Group?

No. Former President Ramos served on the Carlyle Asia Advisory Board until the board was disbanded in February 2004.

Back to the top

10. Is former U.K. Prime Minister John Major Chairman of Carlyle Europe?

No. Mr. Major retired from that position in May 2004 and remains a member of the Advisory Boards of Carlyle Europe, Carlyle Europe Venture, and Carlyle/Riverstone Global Energy. There are no plans for a successor.

Back to the top

11. Who are your investors?

Carlyle's investors are public and private institutional investors and high net worth individuals. Carlyle does not disclose information about its investors.

Back to the top

12. What do your advisory boards do? Who sits on the boards?

Carlyle has four advisory boards that provide insight and knowledge to our investment professionals regarding the management of Carlyle’s buyout, venture capital and real estate funds. Board members come primarily from the business community.

Back to the top

13. How is Carlyle different from other private equity firms?

Carlyle's global presence and local market knowledge sets us apart from other private equity firms. We have Global Vision : Local Insight - Global because Carlyle operates 26 funds in 14 countries; Local because our nearly 300 investment professionals work in their home countries. Carlyle is also different because of its conservative investment philosophy; rather than swing for the fences with every investment, we strive for consistency, hitting singles, doubles, and triples with far fewer strike-outs. Carlyle investment professionals also invest their own money alongside our investors, so when we say we treat our investors' money like our own, we mean it.

Back to the top

14. Do you have investments in the Middle East?

Yes. We have several venture capital investments in Israel and one in Turkey. We have no investments in Saudi Arabia.

Back to the top

15. Why doesn’t Carlyle publish detailed accounts of its funds’ performance? How about audited financials of The Carlyle Group itself?

As a private partnership, Carlyle is not subject to the same disclosure rules as public companies. Nonetheless, this website contains a wealth of information about Carlyle, its investment professionals, investment approach, and portfolio companies.

Back to the top


contined next post.....

 

[FLOPSwife]

No Chicken CONTINUED

16. There are some websites that imply that Carlyle’s success is linked to the connections its former government officials bring to the table. Is this true?



No. The Internet is a wonderful tool for gathering information and doing research, but much of the information on the web is based on opinion, not fact. Carlyle is quite proud of all its staff, including the former government officials who served in both Republican and Democratic administrations with distinction. We hold ourselves to the highest standards of conduct to ensure that the well-earned reputations of all our employees remain beyond reproach. We welcome all inquiries. Carlyle is an amazing success story and we are pleased to share it.



Back to the top



17. Who benefits from Carlyle’s investments?



Carlyle invests on behalf of public and private institutional investors and high net worth individuals. In many cases, our institutional investors are pension funds that represent state and city employees and workers at large corporations. We are proud of the fact that tens of thousands of everyday middle class people are able to benefit from the success of Carlyle’s investment activities.



Back to the top



The Private Equity Industry



1. What is private equity?



Private equity is a form of investing in which companies such as Carlyle invest in private companies and real estate. Occasionally private equity firms make investments in public companies, which are called PIPEs or private investment in public equities. Of Carlyle’s more than 300 portfolio companies, only 14 are publicly held companies and most of these went public after Carlyle had invested in them.



Back to the top



2. Who can invest with The Carlyle Group?



U.S. securities laws allow firms such as Carlyle to work only with “accredited” investors. These are sophisticated investors with considerable financial and legal resources, such as high net worth individuals and institutional investors. These rules prohibit Carlyle from offering its products to the general public.



Back to the top



3. What is a leveraged buyout?



Carlyle engages in management-led buyouts, which are the purchase of companies in cooperation with the current management. A combination of equity and debt is used for the typical transaction. The equity mostly comes from Carlyle’s various funds and other “co-investors” and the debt typically comes from major banks.



Back to the top

 

[FLOPSwife]

No Chicken Continued STILL

4. What is venture capital?



Venture capital is money that is invested in companies to help them get started or to grow. Carlyle is a venture capital firm with funds in the U.S., Europe, and Asia. Investments range in the $5 - $20 million range and are usually coupled with funding from other venture capital firms. Carlyle specializes in technology & business services companies.



Back to the top



5. What is leveraged finance?



Carlyle's high yield investments consist of structured vehicles known as Collateralized Debt Obligations (CDOs) that primarily invest in a portfolio of non-investment grade assets. An equity investment in the CDOs affords investors the opportunity to divest their holdings and gain exposure to the high yield fixed income and leveraged bank loan markets.



Mezzanine is the level of securities that resides between common equity and senior debt and includes preferred stock and senior subordinated debt. Mezzanine investments have high risk adjusted returns with significant current income.



Distressed or "strategic" investments are made in the debt of operationally sound, financially distressed, U.S. middle market companies using a control-oriented strategy that focuses on the debt of smaller, less liquid issuers in industries in which Carlyle has demonstrated expertise. Distressed investing offers investors the opportunity to earn high, risk adjusted returns.



Back to the top



6. Why are the returns in private equity typically higher than the public markets?



In the world of investing, rates of returns correlate well with rates of risk: the greater the risk, the greater the return; the lower the risk, the lower the return. Private equity investments are among the most risky investments. Nonetheless, Carlyle is a conservative investor, which is why we have few “black holes or blow-ups,” which are large investments that fail.

---------------------------------------------------------

 

[FLOPSwife]

No Chicken Contined YET Still

Firm Profile



The Carlyle Group is one of the world’s largest private equity firms, with more than $18.9 billion under management. With 26 funds across four investment disciplines (management-led buyouts, real estate, leveraged finance, and venture capital), Carlyle combines global vision with local insight, relying on a top-flight team of nearly 300 investment professionals operating out of offices in 14 countries to uncover superior opportunities in North America, Europe, and Asia.



While open to opportunities wherever they can be found, Carlyle focuses on sectors in which it has demonstrated expertise: aerospace & defense, automotive & transportation, consumer & retail, energy & power, healthcare, industrial, real estate, technology & business services, and telecommunications & media.



In a world awash with information, insight is often in short supply. Carlyle’s edge is its ability to leverage the local insight of its investment professionals, collaborating across the firms’ investment disciplines from deal sourcing and due diligence through portfolio company development. The result: A broader view of potential investment opportunities and deeper level of expertise, creating value for Carlyle portfolio companies that translates into superior returns for Carlyle investors.



Carlyle’s team of investment professionals includes 127 MBAs, 27 JDs and 12 PhD/MDs from many of the world’s most prestigious universities.



Carlyle’s conservative investment philosophy and disciplined investment process has generated extraordinary returns for its investors. Since its founding in 1987, the firm has invested $12.4 billion in 355 transactions.



More than 600 investors from 55 countries entrust Carlyle with their capital and their reputations. As one means of aligning its own interests with those of its Limited Partner investors, Carlyle has committed more than $900 million of its own capital to its funds.

----------------------------------------------------------

 

[FLOPSwife]

No Chicken Continued..THE END

July 19, 2004

# 2004-48

The Carlyle Group Buys Garrett Aviation from General Electric Company; Garrett to Be Combined with Piedmont Hawthorne



Washington, DC - Global private equity firm The Carlyle Group today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement with General Electric Company to acquire Garrett Aviation Services, a leading provider of aftermarket services to the general aviation industry.



Garrett Aviation Services is a premier provider of a broad range of maintenance services for corporate aircraft, including a variety of engine and airframe maintenance, repair and overhaul services, avionics installations and interior refurbishments. Garrett has a long-standing history in the general aviation industry with more than fifty years of experience and has built a reputation for strong engineering and technical expertise. Garrett has nine facilities located across North America and a dedicated base of more than 1,000 employees.



Carlyle intends to combine Garrett with one of its existing portfolio companies, Piedmont Hawthorne. Piedmont is the second largest fixed base operator in North America with a network of 32 fixed base operations. Piedmont provides refueling, maintenance and aircraft charter and management services to a variety of corporate, fractional and individual aircraft operators. Piedmont also owns Associated Air Center, a leading aircraft interior completions and modifications center. The combination will create a leading general aviation aftermarket service provider offering a more comprehensive range of services to better serve the needs of its broad customer base.



The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2004. Frank Klaus, the current President of Garrett will lead the joint company as Chief Executive Officer.



“We are excited about what the future holds for Garrett,” Klaus said. “With the support of our new shareholder, we will continue to provide the same level of quality service Garrett is known for and now can focus on expanding our presence in the market. We believe that as an independent entity and in combination with Piedmont we will be able to better serve the needs of the general aviation market and the evolving needs of our customers.”



Adam Palmer, Carlyle Managing Director, said, “Garrett’s strong heritage in the industry, reputation for quality, technical expertise and extensive customer relationships have created one of the preeminent maintenance, repair and overhaul service providers in the general aviation industry. We believe the combination with Piedmont creates a true full-service general aviation aftermarket company with a national presence to meet the expanding needs of its customers. The combination pairs some of the most recognized names in the general aviation industry and will be well positioned to capitalize on the future growth in business aviation. We look forward to working with the existing management to enhance the value of the company.”



Carlyle was advised in this transaction by Lehman Brothers and CitiGroup.

--------------------------------------------------------------------

 

[On Your Six]

This is a big deal. The Carlyle Group is one of the most powerful private equity firms out there - John Major (the former Prime Minister of England) is a London-based partner of this firm. It has a number of aviation interests - which should help. I would view this as a positive if it is true.

 

[choppengruven]

It is my opinion and business experience that the sell was complete when a change of CEO's was announced. It is common business practice amongst large corporations. Now will They pleaz hire some freakin people!!!

 

[LR45JI]

May I will stop hearing: "When are you going to get your contract done, so we can get a pay raise?" from the the FO guys?

Maybe we will start asking: "Is FO hiring?"

 

[Dep676]

I wouldn't get to excited. Not to bust anyones balls at NJ but look who owns them. BH or Uncle Warren and it's not like their checks are busting at the seams. Just because a big wealthy company owns you doesn't mean that the employees will benefit.

I am still looking to get out quick.

 

[jetwash]

You don't make big profits in aviation if you spend all of your money on employees.
I think they will worry more about the share holders than the pilots.

 

[On Your Six]

I wouldn't get to excited. Not to bust anyones balls at NJ but look who owns them. BH or Uncle Warren and it's not like their checks are busting at the seams. Just because a big wealthy company owns you doesn't mean that the employees will benefit.

I am still looking to get out quick.

Hey, with that 800XP experience, you can apply to Netjets!

 

[Dep676]

You don't make big profits in aviation if you spend all of your money on employees.
I think they will worry more about the share holders than the pilots.

Yeah I know that is why I am saying don't get to excited about some big time investment firm possibly buying us (Options).

 

[dalegribble]

Nice ad for the Carlyle Group on the previous page, but here is the fact of the matter:

Yes Carlyle is all of those things, they are also heavily financed through the Saudi's

The most important thing about Carlyle is that they are an investment group and to make money for their investors they buy companies, expand them and make them bigger. They put tremendous pressure on their companies by forcing wage, raise, benefit etc.... cuts. I am sure they would not think twice about sacrificing maint. and safety areas to turn a buck.

 

[Heavy Set]

Nice ad for the Carlyle Group on the previous page, but here is the fact of the matter:

Yes Carlyle is all of those things, they are also heavily financed through the Saudi's

The most important thing about Carlyle is that they are an investment group and to make money for their investors they buy companies, expand them and make them bigger. They put tremendous pressure on their companies by forcing wage, raise, benefit etc.... cuts. I am sure they would not think twice about sacrificing maint. and safety areas to turn a buck.

So, you're suggesting Gemini Air Cargo (also owned by Carlyle Group) is unsafe? Its record says otherwise... Look, you wouldn't invest in anything if it wouldn't ultimately give you a good return on investment (ROI). As far as I am concerned, it is better to be backed by a group with serious cash than a group with little resources...

It may be true that the Saudis have bankrolled this group, but some pretty reputable people work for Carlyle including James Baker (former Secretary of State under Bush Sr.), Frank Carlucci (former Defense Secretary) and John Major (former Prime Minister of England). Not too shabby... I'll bet that Colin Powell makes his way to Carlyle Group after he retires from the Government (Carlyle Group is based in Washington D.C.).

I would say that growth (potentially in Europe like Netjets) would be a distinct possibility because they won't be able to cut pilot salaries that much without getting a big backlash - not good in a service business... Revenue growth with slight margin contraction is probably the big aim - including stunting NJA's growth in Europe and the Middle East most likely. Who knows? We could see some serious fleet upgrades and growth in aircraft numbers - it could happen to increase the overall "value" of the venture for Carlyle... Cost cutting alone won't boost the value in the event they want to ultimately sell it or take it public. It should be interesting.

 

[waka]

Nice ad for the Carlyle Group on the previous page, but here is the fact of the matter:

Yes Carlyle is all of those things, they are also heavily financed through the Saudi's

The most important thing about Carlyle is that they are an investment group and to make money for their investors they buy companies, expand them and make them bigger. They put tremendous pressure on their companies by forcing wage, raise, benefit etc.... cuts. I am sure they would not think twice about sacrificing maint. and safety areas to turn a buck.

Who funds the Saudis? We do!