In talks could easily just mean you ring the reception desk at head office once a month and don’t get put through as they are always out or busy.

It doesn’t prove you’re speaking to the right people, nor does it give any indication of an airlines likelihood of setting up shop.

in sales talk, it’s you’re conversion rate that matters.

Well considering that they've voluntarily removed the commercial passenger licence, I can't exactly see a queue of buyers.

I wonder whether they'll try to combine/offload CAX to whoever the new buyer of SEN will be as they won't want to be left with it as a stand-alone 'non-core' asset.

The recently released interim results state that cash runs out in November 2024, unless the current Carlyle debt instrument can be renegotiated to both extend its maturity from May 2024 to December 2025, and also remove the need to pay ongoing interest on the debt until the maturity date.

Whilst there is no firm information from Carlyle on how this is playing out, I doubt that they would be initiating legal action now if they were amenable to improving the debt terms in Esken's favour, pending a sale to a third party.

So it is pure speculation in the absence of firm information to suggest that Carlyle will take the airport by default, however this does look like the most likely scenario given the information we have seen in the public domain.

My bet is Carlyle Global Infrastructure to be the owners of SEN before the end of 2024.

https://www.independent.co.uk/travel...-b2457905.html

The least of SEN's worries at the moment I should think LTNman.

£45! Jesus. No wonder.

That leisure travellers can afford £45 for access to an 'executive lounge' beggars belief.

There must be plenty of fools around easily parted from their money! (That applies to lounges in general, not singling out SEN).

With often just one departure is the £45 lounge passenger trying to get away from the crowds? I actually wonder if anyone actually uses it seeing that Southend has won awards for its airport experience.

I looked to fly SEN-CDG next week. At the time the outbound was pricing at £43.99, less than the lounge!

According to the Esken Website Carlisle will be sold together with a Site they own at Widnes. Terms are under negotiation and completion is expected by end of February 2024. No mention of the purchaser.

The Skylife Lounge has been closed since the airport reopened post covid. Now you just get to sit in a reserved section of the Pilot Bar and enjoy complimentary nibbles. Still, anything to enjoy the envious stares of the plebs before boarding.

My reading of the Esken interim results differs from yours. The loan that Esken are trying to re-negotiate a new maturity date from its current May 2024 until December 2025 is an Exchangeable Bond from a lender other than Carlyle. The Carlyle Convertible Debt Instrument is a £125m, 7 year facility that matures in July 2028 with an option for Carlyle to convert it into a 30% equity holding in London Southend Airport at any time during that period. The current Esken 'plan' is that early settlement of that Convertible debt will be made upon the sale of LSA.

It is obviously important that Esken are successful in renegotiating the repayment date of the Exchangeable Bond to maintain liquidity and if they are successful then Carlyle could only convert their Convertible loan to a 30% equity stake in LSA in the interim and I doubt they will do that.

This is correct. The main Exchangeable Bond Holder has 69% of this debt and seems content with the proposal which also means Esken are saved the Interest meantime. Holders are offered a 10% additional payment in December 2025 instead. A Bondholder meeting is to be held soon with 75% of votes cast required for the proposal to succeed. Voting against the proposal would almost certainly see most of the Bondholders investment lost if they forced Esken into Administration in May 2024.

You are correct Expressflight. The exchangeable bond was issued seperate to the CGI debt and I am mistaken in conflating the two. The CGI debt is worth circa £175m on redemption which I'm guessing CGI would prefer over a 30% share in the (loss-making) airport. The exchangeable bond is secured against shares in LDG Plc and is the junior of the debt on the balance sheet that totals £328m.

Thanks for that additional information which adds some perspective to the prospects for the successful renegotiation of the Exchangeable Bond.

PMI is rising to 8x weekly next summer with extra flights added on the missing day (Tuesday, I think) and a second on Fridays. Every little helps.

Aeroitalia announcement due today.

Should be three destinations. Bergamo currently on the booking system 6 x weekly commencing 25th March 2024.

Aeroitalia at Heathrow did not go well. Are we sure it's going to work at Southend ?

Do we know why it did not go well? I would expect charges to be considerably lower

Advertisement will be key for this one, as most people will automatically go and book Ryanair from Stansted. Hopefully Aeroitalia at least give it time, although they have been a bit chop and change with routes since their launch and still seem a bit up in the air. Hopefully will be a success. Although like many, I'm skeptical how long this lasts.