PE firm buys Ansett Aviation Centre, picks ex-Qantas boss Jackson as head

AUSTRALIAN private equity firm Champ Ventures has bought Melbourne's Ansett Aviation Centre, a large aviation training unit with a large set of flight simulators, and has appointed ex-Qantas CEO Margaret Jackson as chairwoman.

"We see a lot of growth potential and upside in the business the number of pilots that will be needed across Asia," said Greg Smith, who with Melanie Strong joins the Ansett board on behalf of Champ.

Said Ms Jackson: "I never thought I would do anything in aviation again. But when I toured the facilities, I was so impressed and decided it was an opportunity to combine an industry I already knew with my existing interest in the training and development of people."

Ms Jackson expects Ansett Aviation to grow by expanding its existing Melbourne facility and by monitoring opportunities in the region with a view to create bases across Australasia.

Former owners who retain a minority interest bought the training facility near Melbourne's Tullamarine airport from the administrators of what was Australia's second-largest carrier, Ansett Australia until it collapsed in 2001, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The centre is equipped with 12 simulators, including an Airbus A320 and a Boeing 737, which are available 24/7 to pilots including those from Qantas's low-cost carrier Jetstar, Singapore-owned Tiger Airways, Papua New Guinea's national airline Air Niugini and domestic carriers like Regional Express.

Ansett Aviation's newly appointed chairman is a familiar face in the airline industry, former Qantas chairman Margaret Jackson, who was on the Flying Kangaroo's board of directors between 1992 and 2007.

Said Ms Jackson: "I never thought I would do anything in aviation ever again. But when I toured the facilities, which were first-class, I was so impressed and decided it was an opportunity to combine an industry I already knew with my existing interest in the training and development of people."

Ms Jackson and Ansett Aviation's general manager Robert Crook both own equity in the business.