Wheels Up Experience (Wheels Up), the private aircraft charter enterprise faces closure as demand for personal air transport continues to fall post the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to REUTERS, the warning comes despite Delta Air Lines providing the business with substantial short-term funding. Wheels Up charters private aircraft to clients by the hour and according to data from Argus International, demand has fallen noticeably, with July 2023 figures showing flights were down 3.6% compared to July 2022. Delta's loan came in the form of a promissory note while Wheels Up seeks other strategic partnerships, though the size of the loan has not been disclosed.
Wheels Up, which cancelled an earnings call scheduled for Wednesday, August 9, said U.S. private jet operator Airshare had entered into a non-binding agreement with the company to acquire its non-core aircraft management business. Airshare said with this potential acquisition it would have aircraft management customers across the U.S.
Wheels up has fallen victim to the fact that there was a huge growth in private jet travel because people avoided commercial airlines during the pandemic, but as commercial travel has recovered, it has hit private operators. Wheels Up is a provider of “on demand” private aviation in the United States and one of the largest private aviation companies in the world. It was founded in 2013 by Kenny Dichter, using a membership/on-demand business model.
