Saudi inflight caterer AAFC sells major stake to Singapore's SATS

AAFC is an inflight caterer that serves private jets and Hajj charters as well as international airlines such as Cathay Pacific Airways  and Malaysia Airlines.

It has two catering facilities located at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah and King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. In 2010, AAFC reported a revenue of about US$11 million, said SATS in a statement.

'The acquisition of a meaningful minority stake in AAFC is part of our strategic thrusts to leverage our core competencies to access attractive opportunities and grow our footprint in the Middle East,' said Clement Woon, SATS president and chief executive officer.

'Given AAFC's presence in Saudi's two busiest airports which have a combined traffic exceeding 30 million passengers and 270,000 flights, SATS is able to access Saudi's private jet, Hajj and airline catering services market and potentially develop new service opportunities with our key customers at more locations.'

As part of the agreement between the shareholders, SATS has appointed three executives for the key positions of chief executive officer, chief financial officer and executive chef in AAFC.