12 Feb 15. After reporting a quarterly loss, Bombardier Inc. (BBDb.TO) said Thursday it plans to raise more than $2bn in equity and debt, suspend its dividends and shuffle its leadership, bringing in an outsider as chief executive. The Canadian plane and train maker, which is testing its new CSeries jet that has been plagued by delays and cost overruns, had said just last month it had enough liquidity to fund its development programs. A former United Technologies Corp (UTX.N) executive, Alain Bellemare, will become chief executive on Friday, replacing Pierre Beaudoin, who will become executive chairman. Pierre Beaudoin’s father, Laurent Beaudoin, will retire as chairman. The news comes as Bombardier reported a quarterly loss due to a $1.4bn charge relating to its decision to suspend development of a new Learjet model, announced last month. Bombardier said it plans to raise about $600m in equity and up to $1.5bn in new long-term debt. Shareholders will need to vote to authorize the company to issue the needed shares at a special meeting. It will suspend dividends on both Class A and common shares until further notice. Bombardier said it would explore other options to reduce debt, including “certain business activities’ potential participation in industry consolidation.” “This is a new beginning, both for myself and for Bombardier,” said Bellemare in a statement. “We must improve profitability and realize the true potential of this great organization.” Bellemare has worked for 18 years at United Technologies, maker of Pratt & Whitney aircraft engines, which power the CSeries. Mostly recently, he headed the company’s propulsion and aerospace business. Bombardier reported a net loss of $1.59n, or 92 cents a share, in the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, after earning a profit of $97m, or 5 cents per share, a year ago. Revenue grew 12 percent to $5.96bn. Excluding the charge related to Learjet, the company earned 4 cents a share, compared with analysts’ average estimate of 2 cents, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
13 Feb 15. Meteor Aerospace – Israel’s New Defence Company. Two and a half years after leaving the post of CEO of Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd., Itzhak Nissan, in an exclusive interview with “Globes”, unveils Meteor Aerospace, the new defence company he founded together with Hezi Bezalel. The company deals in unmanned systems, and mainly aims at markets in Asia, Latin America, and Africa. Its top management, revealed here for the first time, consists of former senior managers in Israel’s defense establishment and IAI. “All my life, I have been involved in creativity, initiative, innovation, and management. After running Israel’s largest defense company, I looked for a worthwhile and interesting challenge. I decided to continue in the defense field, which I know extremely well, this time as a private entrepreneur. I feel that I am once more at the forefront of the defense business, only this time I don’t have to worry about sixteen thousand employees as I did at IAI. What I’m doing gives me great satisfaction,” says Nissan, chairman and CEO of Meteor Aerospace. Nissan refuses to provide details of Bezalel’s investment in the company, but confirms that they have equal stakes in it. Defense industry sources estimate the initial investment in the company at over $10 million. Nissan says of Bezalel, who has been reported in the past to have been involved arms deals, mainly in Africa, “He’s a strategic investor with vision, who, unlike financial investors, is not interested in a quick exit, but thinks long term about a technology and manufacturing company that will develop, grow, and become a significant player in its area of business.” The private company’s management includes former Ministry of Defense Security Authority director Yehiel Horev; former Bank Hapoalim VP Avi Harel; former government minister Raanan Cohen; and former Israeli defense attaché in Russia Col. (Res.) Efraim Michael. Nissan says that they will s