Dated 12/31/2001
Amerijet quickly emerges from bankruptcy
South Florida Business Journal - December 31, 2001
All-cargo airline Amerijet International said it has successfully emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization, only four months after it first filed for court protection.
Amerijet is now jointly owned by its founder, CEO David Bassett, and an affiliate of
H.I.G. Capital, a Miami-based private equity and venture capital firm. Bassett continues as CEO, while H.I.G. has acquired a majority interest and assisted in the financial restructuring of the company. Key elements of the reorganization were the owners' combined cash infusion of $3 million and a newly established credit facility for working capital.
The reorganization had no impact on Amerijet's scheduled route system throughout the Caribbean, Mexico and Latin America, nor on its charter and worldwide cargo services, according to Bassett as quoted in a press release.
Other key elements of the reorganization included H.I.G. Capital's purchase of Amerijet's corporate headquarters at 2800 S. Andrews Avenue in Fort Lauderdale. It is leased back to Amerijet. In addition, Amerijet has reduced its fleet of Boeing 727-200 aircraft to a total of five from an earlier fleet of 12. The company also has established an employee stock ownership plan that could acquire up to 10 percent of the company's stock over three years.
H.I.G. Capital is a private equity and venture capital investment firm with more than $750 million of equity capital under management.
Amerijet International is owned by HIG Capital (66%) and David Bassett (34%) and has 577 employees (as of January
2005).
