Onex Bullish On Aerospace

Raytheon Aircraft is not the first aerospace company that Onex has acquired, and it probably won’t be the last. In June 2005, the Canadian buyout firm purchased Boeing’s structural components business in Wichita for $1.2 billion, forming Spirit AeroSystems. Last month, it did an initial public offering for Spirit AeroSystems, raking in some $1.4 billion from stock sales. And this past April, Onex bought BAE Systems Aerostructures, which incidentally manufacturers Hawker 800XP subassemblies in the UK. According to Onex Managing Director Nigel Wright, “We have become increasingly optimistic about the aerospace industry as we have made it a significant focus for Onex in the past few years. Our growing experience and expertise, along with our solid relationships in the industry broadly and in the Wichita business environment specifically, give us a great deal of confidence that this investment [Raytheon Aircraft] represents a terrific opportunity for all involved.” Onex is currently part of a group of bidders looking to buy Australian airline Qantas.