Swissport Ukraine Loses Legal Battle With Shareholder
Swissport International Ltd. today announced that with immediate effect it lost ownership and control of Swissport Ukraine completely after a binding court decision in Kiev, Ukraine. The loss of ownership is the unfortunate consequence of a successful hostile raider attack of Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) and its main shareholder.
With immediate effect Swissport International Ltd. has lost ownership and control of Swissport Ukraine completely after a binding court decision in Kiev, Ukraine. This is the unfortunate consequence of the successful hostile raider attack of Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) and its main shareholder, Mr. Aron Mayberg. This hostile raider attack was based on alleged violations of formalities without legal grounds and now resulted, after unfair judicial process, in this surprising loss of ownership.
With immediate effect any responsibility for this Ukrainian legal entity (so far known as “Swissport Ukraine”) now lies solely with the new owner, Ukraine International Airlines. Due to this unscrupulous enforced change of ownership the former “Swissport Ukraine” will be no longer covered under the Swissport International Aviation Liability Insurance and all other international insurance programmes controlled by Swissport International. Swissport International will take instant action to remove the brand “Swissport Ukraine” with immediate effect, as all liabilities are now with the new owner.
“We very much regret the difficulties and impact the court decision and the hostile approach of UIA has caused to us and may cause to our esteemed customers and business partners”, commented Juan-José Andrés Alvez, Executive Vice President Ground Handling Europe, Africa and Latin America.
And he proceeds: “Despite this unfortunate attack and the difficult environment we will continue to fight to get our company back, and it is Swissport International’s intention to re-enter the Ukrainian market. Should this not be possible under normal business conditions the aviation industry will have failed to support and defend open competition and ethical business practices.”
Swissport International Ltd. provides ground services for around 118 million passengers and 3.5 million tonnes of cargo a year on behalf of some 650 client-companies in the aviation sector. With a workforce of around 40,000 personnel, Swissport is active at 192 stations in 38 countries on five continents, and generates annual consolidated operating revenue of CHF 1.9 billion. www.swissport.com
