Libra buys Helios Airways

LIBRA Holidays has acquired Cypriot carrier Helios Airways for an undisclosed sum. The deal comes as the operator looks to expand into the scheduled flight market across Europe. Libra chief executive Andreas Drakou described the acquisition as a “unique opportunity.” “This moves gives us the opportunity to explore the scheduled flight market within our existing activities alongside other projects we are currently developing,” he said. “We have achieved our aim to expand the group’s activities in Cyprus and this acquisition offers us a unique opportunity to grow our business into the island. “We are now looking forward to expanding the airlines existing services further into the UK and the rest of Europe.” Drakou insisted the group will continue to work closely with charter airline Excel in which it holds a 30% stake. “The relationship will continue and indeed strengthen with Excel assisting us with fleet planning and marketing,” he said. Helios currently has scheduled flights from the UK and Ireland to Cyprus along with charter services from Bristol, Newcastle, Humberside and Birmingham. It also has limited services from Cyprus to mainland Europe and recently launched direct services from Larnaca to Warsaw. The plan is to introduce routes to Europe from the UK. The Helios fleet comprises two 189-seat Boeing 737-800s and a 737-300 with 136 seats.