BRUSSELS, 23 June 2009 — The Association of European Airlines, an association of Europe’s leading network airlines, announced today that it had signed a partnership agreement with Seabury Aviation & Aerospace LLC, the largest global investment banking and consultancy group serving aviation, aerospace and cargo.

“This co-operation will provide for remarkable synergies”, said AEA Secretary General Ulrich Schulte-Strathaus. “AEA engages in an intense dialogue with regulatory bodies of the European Union, and in so doing underlines the commonality of interests of its members, whilst Seabury can provide guidance to individual member airlines on issues such as strategy consulting, business planning, acquisition and financing.”

“It is indeed true that our two organisations are a perfect fit”, agreed Henri Courpron, President Europe & Head of Aerospace for Seabury. “With over 175 professionals worldwide, Seabury is well established, having advised major airlines, investors and Aerosapce companies worldwide. We can benefit hugely from AEA’s airline industry expertise, and we will be able to add value to AEA and its members.”

AEA confirmed that this agreement goes beyond the traditional ‘sponsorship agreements’ which have become customary for industry bodies. ”If the European aviation sector is to emerge from the current crisis as resilient, the entire aviation value chain must become more competitive, environmentally sensitised and consumer-oriented”, said Schulte-Strathaus. “To contribute to that goal, we will intensify co-operation with other airline associations, but also reach out to other stakeholders. The strategic partnership with Seabury is a cornerstone of such a forward-looking integrated industry policy; further strategic partnerships will follow.”

The Association of European Airlines (AEA) brings together 34 European established scheduled network carriers. These collectively carry 370 million passengers and 7 million tonnes of cargo each year, operating 2,600 aircraft serving 615 destinations in 165 countries with 11,575 flights a day. They provide around 423,000 jobs directly, and generate a total turnover of €78 billion.

AEA Contact:
David Henderson
Manager Information
Phone : +32(0) 2 639 89 72
Email: david.henderson@aea.be
www.aea.be

Seabury Contact:
Karen C. Cook
Director of Communications
kcook@seaburycapital.com
+1 212-475-8132