RE: Esken expansion through Pax numbers has begun.30 Aug 2023 10:45
Honestly Supercharger - discard those rose tinted specs for a second - and the un truths you type - "Southend Airport was a success pre-pandemic" - No it wasn't!! Esken / Stobart have NEVER made a profit from the airport - the losses up to Feb 2020 were eye watering. The cash burn exponential. Around £250m in the 10 years to Feb 2020. and that's just Southend Airport. Everything they have touched in the aviation industry has gone horribly wrong. in 2017 the share price was £3.03 - or put another way, they've lost virtually 99% of the value of the business. The Balance sheet is held up by 'assets' that are only assets to a functioning and viable airport. The Air Traffic Tower, the terminal building, the modern runway. If the airport is not viable, which unfortunately seems to be the case, then these 'assets' are pretty much valueless if ultimately it turns into a housing or industrial site.
A few extra flights here and there simply add to the ever growing losses and cash burn. I feel for the staff at Southend Airport - They all bought into the Esken dream, and it's turned out to be a nightmare that they are all working hard to get out of. The staggering levels of arrogance and mismanagement over the years has caused so much reputational and financial damage.