A bid by easyJet founder and largest shareholder Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou to remove bosses of the airline in a row over a multi-billion aircraft order has been slammed as an “unnecessary distraction”.
The intervention has led to a general meeting to be held on May 22.
Sir Stelios, whose family owns just over a third of easyJet shares, has called for shareholder votes on the removal of the UK budget airline’s chief executive Johan Lundgren, chairman John Barton, chief financial officer Andrew Findlay and a non-executive director.
Fellow shareholders will vote ahead of the general meeting, which will likely be held as a webcast. The results will be announced at the meeting.
The airline, which has seen its fleet grounded like others by the coronavirus pandemic, has been publicly criticised by Sir Stelios for going ahead with a £4.5 billion order for 107 new Airbus aircraft, exposing the carrier to “significant financial and operational risk”.
Barton urged shareholders to vote against resolutions put forward by Sir Stelios, describing the meeting as “an unnecessary distraction at a time when the airline industry is facing unprecedented challenge”.
He added: “The resolutions to remove the directors are an attempt to force easyJet to terminate its Airbus contract. This is not in the best interests of the company or its shareholders as a whole.
“Having already taken decisive and urgent action to bolster easyJet’s liquidity for a prolonged grounding, the board remains focused on successfully guiding easyJet through this continued period of uncertainty.
“Removing four directors from the board, including the chairman, CEO and CFO, would be extremely damaging and destabilising at this critical time.”
The airline’s contact with Airbus was signed in 2013 and it agreed to defer the delivery of 24 aircraft earlier in April as part of action to ensure easyJet has sufficient liquidity “for a prolonged grounding and to meet its existing obligations”.
Sir Stelios said: “Their official circular that defends their current positions and keeps the Airbus scandal in place, makes them sound just like an Airbus chief marketing officer.”
Directors he is seeking to oust “have not said that they can save easyJet from bankruptcy and keep paying Airbus.
“Cancelling the Airbus contract is the only chance we have to save easyJet.”
