EasyJet: News, Fleet Updates & Global Discussion

[rollo]

The potential takeover of EasyJet reaches a crunch time this coming week with Clearlake having to make a formal offer by 5,0pm. tomorrow 3/8 and Apollo the same by Friday. If no formal offer is forthcoming the takeover falls and the bidders have to walk away for a minimum of 6 months

 

[rollo]

Easyjet have applied to the Take Over Panel to extend and been given permission to extend the time limit for Castlelake to bid formally to Friday 5.0pm. to match that of Apollo.

 

[SierraHotel]

BBC News - EasyJet agrees to £5.7bn takeover by US firm - BBC News

EasyJet agrees to £5.7bn takeover by US firm

The no-frills carrier agrees to be bought by US firm Apollo after a rival suitor drops out.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[rollo]

Now we begin to see :

Apollo are to load £3 billionof of debt onto EasyJet taking them from being£434 million cash positive into massive debt and creates huge change in its financial situation.

This will likely force EasyJet into choices of various action from cost cutting in all its forms, staff redundancy, revised contracts etc or splitting out and selling off the various parts of the group UK/-EU/Swiss divisions for example. Additionally Easy have a large forward order book with Airbus which is highly attractive and potentially these aircraft could be leased out elsewhere. Coincidentally or not Apollo have a portfolio of leased out aircraft.

Come what may if the deal completes EasyJet seem certain to be a very different business in future.

 

[Sherburnflyer92]

How can you load the £3bn of debt onto a different company?

If they have £3bn of debt you don't load it onto another business. I hope for the sake of easyJet and long term aviation that this deal is rejected by the regulators.

 

[rollo]

How can you load the £3bn of debt onto a different company?

I'm afraid you can its easy, pun intended you purchase your target and pass the debt on to the company with interest that you now own.

Like you I hope it falls through but I believe it's a done deal Apollo have a clever way round EU regulations by putting 5% of shares in a trust while they will own 49.5% and the balance owned by shareholders who retain shares in the new company. Not particularly nice but thats the way of things in the financial world.

 

[Sherburnflyer92]

I feel for all employees of easyJet going forward. If this is what they are going to do I imagine that they'll make easyJet a financing workhouse.

I imagine despite them owning the airbus fleet they'll be suddenly owned by Apollo's leasing company and leased to easyJet at an extremely high rate with the "use it or loose it" tag line attached. Making easyJet unaffordable.

 

[Aviador]

easyJet Winter 2026/27 UK Network Changes Summary
Credit to AeroRoutes for the detailed schedule comparison (filings up to late August 2026). Here is a comprehensive rundown of the permanent route drops, mid-winter suspensions, and truncated seasonal services across easyJet's UK network for the upcoming W26/27 season.
1. Route Cancellations & Permanent Drops

• Liverpool (LPL) – Barcelona: 4x weekly service cancelled from 25 Oct 2026.
• Manchester (MAN) – Oslo: 2x weekly service cancelled from 25 Oct 2026 (route fully withdrawn).
• Birmingham (BHX) – Milan Linate: 2x weekly service cancelled from 26 Oct 2026.

2. Mid-Winter Suspensions (Post-Christmas Trough)
Airlines trimming capacity across the low-yield January to mid-February period.
Bristol (BRS)

• Antalya: Suspended 08 Nov 2026 – 12 Feb 2027
• Murcia: Suspended 16 Nov 2026 – 13 Feb 2027
• Bordeaux: Suspended 04 Jan 2027 – 11 Feb 2027
• Bilbao: Suspended 03 Jan 2027 – 12 Feb 2027
• Nice: Suspended 03 Jan 2027 – 05 Feb 2027
• Palma de Mallorca: Suspended 04 Jan 2027 – 03 Feb 2027
• Munich: Suspended 05 Jan 2027 – 11 Feb 2027
• Zurich: Suspended 05 Jan 2027 – 11 Feb 2027
• Paphos: Suspended 07 Jan 2027 – 12 Feb 2027
• Athens: Suspended 10 Jan 2027 – 05 Feb 2027

Manchester (MAN)

• Naples: Suspended 01 Nov 2026 – 12 Feb 2027
• Faro: Suspended 11 Dec 2026 – 10 Feb 2027
• Bordeaux: Suspended 05 Jan 2027 – 11 Feb 2027
• Ljubljana: Suspended 06 Jan 2027 – 12 Feb 2027

Birmingham (BHX)

• Nice: Suspended 14 Nov 2026 – 28 Feb 2027
• Antalya: Suspended 28 Nov 2026 – 11 Feb 2027
• Gibraltar: Suspended 05 Jan 2027 – 11 Feb 2027
• Lisbon: Suspended 05 Jan 2027 – 11 Feb 2027
• Inverness: Suspended 02 Jan 2027 – 25 Jan 2027

Liverpool (LPL)

• Antalya: Suspended 22 Nov 2026 – 12 Feb 2027
• Enfidha: Suspended 06 Jan 2027 – 08 Feb 2027
• Faro: Suspended 06 Jan 2027 – 12 Feb 2027

Scottish Bases (EDI / GLA)

• Glasgow – Barcelona: Suspended 03 Jan 2027 – 15 Feb 2027
• Edinburgh – Paphos: Suspended 07 Jan 2027 – 05 Feb 2027

London & South (SEN / LTN)

• London Southend – Palma de Mallorca: Suspended 19 Nov 2026 – 14 Mar 2027
• London Southend – Marrakech: Suspended 10 Jan 2027 – 08 Feb 2027
• London Luton – Basel/Mulhouse: Operating window truncated; operates 26 Nov 2026 – 03 Jan 2027 only.

3. Delayed Starts & Season Truncations

• Bristol – Verona: Delayed seasonal start; begins 13 Feb 2027 (originally scheduled from 05 Dec 2026).
• London Southend – Salzburg: Operates 12 Dec 2026 – 09 Jan 2027, then pauses until 09 Feb 2027.
• Manchester – Rovaniemi: Seasonal window shortened, pausing 10 Jan 2027 – 20 Feb 2027.

Clear network wide push to park airframes during the deep mid-winter period rather than flying thin frequencies at a loss.

#EasyJetRoutes

 

[Seasider]

It is not that surprising that they have cut "away based" routes to LBA when they have made changes as above.
I feel that there will be more cuts from EZY when the new owners fully take over.

 

[Fernley]

Whispers easyjet are starting up NCL/MAN/EDI from SOU

 

[Silvercity]

Cuts also to come from Ryanair.