Electronic flight bag (EFB) and technology developer, navAero, reports that its founder and largest shareholder, Stefan Ridderheim, has become the majority shareholder after taking an 81% stake in the company, removing Saab Group as the second largest shareholder.
The company in January 2008 reported a "significant" investment in equity capital through a private placement of stock from Saab.
"The change of ownership was an absolute necessity to guarantee navAero's long-term future," says Ridderheim. "We need to be in control of our own destiny - and not subject to the changing views of investors that are often influenced by outside factors.
Ridderheim, who has secured more than $4 million in new financing, says he had been exploring bringing new owners into the company but could not find "good options" that fit with its strategic plans. "It became apparent that the only way to have truly committed financial resources was to take the aggressive step and secure the future for ourselves which is exactly what I have done," he says.
navAero, which supplies Class II EFBs to 21 airline customers, reports a backlog of approximately $15 million, enough work to carry it through to 2011.
Ridderheim adds that navAero now has "the assets in-place that will further fuel its growth and secure its position as the most preferred, accepted and deployed EFB system in the commercial aviation market."
Source: Air Transport Intelligence news
