Shares in new Norwegian carrier Flyr soar in debut trade
Shares in new Norwegian airline Flyr rose nearly 30 per cent today in a promising market debut for the recently-launched firm.
The newcomer, which plans to complete its maiden flight by mid-2021, is launching into a market that has been seriously disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic.
It will focus on domestic flights in its home market as well as short-haul trips to some European destinations.
The carrier will be banking on eating into the market share of carriers such as Norwegian and SAS, both of which have been dented by the pandemic.
Norwegian, which is currently undergoing restructuring, is looking especially vulnerable, having cut back its plans to focus purely on its home market.
Flyr, which was founded by a group of industry veterans, raised 600m Norwegian crowns (£50m) at its recent float.
The fledging firm is planning to buy or lease a fleet of eight jets, with a planned increase to 28 aircraft in the next 3-4 years.
“This will enable us to pursue opportunities in a changing market and a recovering airline industry,” chief executive Tonje Wikstroem Frislid said following the IPO.
“Due to the availability of aircraft and crew, a rapid and demand-driven scale-up is possible for Flyr,” she added.