AIR.L Regulatory News (AIR)

8 Aug 2007 07:00

Air Partner PLC08 August 2007 Air Partner PLC ("Air Partner" or "the Group" or "the Company") Pre-Close Trading Update for the 12 months ended 31 July 2007 Prior to entering a close period ahead of its full year results, Air Partner,the provider of private aviation services to industry, commerce, governments andprivate individuals worldwide, is pleased to announce that trading for the 12months ended 31 July 2007 has continued to be strong. Air Partner's business isdiversified by sector, product and geography and it is pleasing to report thatthe Group has performed well across all of these areas. The buoyant tradingconditions, increased efficiencies and strong forward orders flagged at theinterim results have continued, and consequently the Company is anticipatingprofit before tax to be approximately 50% ahead of the comparable period. In February the Group re-structured its core business into two focused operatingdivisions; Air Partner Private Jets and Air Partner Commercial Jets. Bothbusinesses have performed extremely well, beating expectations and growingrevenues. It is particularly pleasingly to report significant growth in theamount of clients regularly using the Group's services this year. The last two years have provided Air Partner with an unprecedented period ofnear perfect trading conditions, driven by a strong global economy, furtherdeterioration of the scheduled airline experience and the continued rapid growthof the high net worth segment. Air Partner has strenuously focused on usingthis environment to hone its strategy of becoming the leading provider of globalprivate aviation solutions, while adding further strength and rigidity to theGroup's infrastructure. Today, Air Partner provides the full range of privateaviation services from its 23 offices, across 15 countries, to a client listthat includes royalty, heads of state, governments (including six of the G8group) and countless blue chip corporations and high net worth individuals. Inthe UK alone, the Group now manages the largest fleet of Lear jets in WesternEurope and is investing a further £5m to develop its high security private jetenclave at its existing Biggin Hill centre. While the forward order book is currently significantly ahead of the comparableperiod, near perfect trading conditions cannot be relied on indefinitely.However, Air Partner is confident that it has fully utilised the excellenttrading environment to further strengthen its business and product offering, asevidenced by recent performances. The Group's full year results will be announced on Thursday October 11th 2007.A presentation of the results will be held at 9:30am at Temple Bar Advisory, 60Cannon Street, London, EC4N 6NP. For information on the presentation pleasecontact Tom Allison or Nicola Flynn on T.020 7002 1080 or emailnicolaf@templebaradvisory.com - ends - Notes to editors: please ensure "Air Partner" is written in its correct singularform, not in the plural. 8th August 2007 ENQUIRIES: Temple Bar Advisory Tel: 0207 002 1080Tom Allison Tel: 0778 999 8020Nicola Flynn This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange