Aviation: US investor is considering taking over low-cost airline Easyjet

The British website “Betaville” reported on Castlelake’s takeover ideas. Castlelake later stressed that there was no certainty that there would be a bid. The considerations are still at an early stage. They have not yet spoken to the board of directors.

It is not the first time that Easyjet has come into focus. There was last speculation in October 2025 about a takeover offer from the major Swiss shipping company MSC for Easyjet. Ultimately, there was no offer for the British competitor to Europe’s largest low-cost airline Ryanair.

High hurdles for airline takeovers

Cross-border takeovers in the airline sector are difficult due to legal hurdles. Takeoff, landing and overflight rights are usually tied to which countries the airline’s owners come from and who exercises control over the company. Within the EU and since Brexit also within the EU and Great Britain, the rules are looser. But if a US investor takes over, Easyjet could lose important rights to operate within the EU.

“Airlines must be majority owned and controlled by EU citizens in order to receive operating licenses in the region,” writes analyst Harry Gowers from the US bank JPMorgan. “A non-EU controlled company like Castlelake cannot theoretically take over a majority stake in Easyjet and at the same time retain the rights to fly within the EU.” However, alternative structures for a deal are conceivable. In addition, Easyjet founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou holds around 15 percent of Easyjet shares and receives annual license payments for the trademark rights.

Airlines under pressure because of Iran war

The uncertainty caused by the Iran war and the extremely high kerosene prices are currently weighing on airlines. In April, Easyjet therefore issued a profit warning. Even in the quarterly figures in May, company boss Kenton Jarvis did not dare to make a profit forecast for the current financial year. For the important summer quarter from July to September, only 40 percent of the tickets were sold, three percentage points less than a year ago, the reason given was. However, last-minute bookings remain strong. The management has increased the price for the cheapest tickets and is reducing the in-house costs.

In the usually weak first half of the business year up to the end of March, Easyjet increased sales by twelve percent to 3.95 billion British pounds (around 4.56 billion euros). However, due to significantly higher operating costs, the typical winter loss before taxes grew by 40 percent to 552 million pounds. The bottom line was that the deficit swelled from £297 million to £377 million.

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