Lonrho chooses Airbus A319 to launch low cost African airline

LONRHO PLC
(Incorporated and registered in England and Wales)
(Registration number 2805337)
(Share code: LAF ISIN number: GB0002568813)
(a''Lonrhoa'')



                   FastJet chooses Airbus A319 to launch low cost African airline




Lonrho advises that Rubicon Diversified Investments Plc has today made the following news/media
release:

a''Rubicon Diversified Investments Plc


("Rubicon" or the a''Companya'' or a''FastJeta''; AIM: RUBI)


FastJet chooses Airbus A319 to launch low cost African airline


Rubicon today announces it has chosen the Airbus A319 aircraft to launch its new low cost carrier,
FastJet, across Africa, with the first aircraft expected to carry passengers by October. FastJet will
operate under a brand licence agreement with easyGroup Holdings Limited (a''easyGroupa'') and Sir
Stelios Haji-Ioannou, founder of leading low cost airline, easyJet.


Commenting on the announcement, Rubicon Chief Executive Ed Winter, said:


a''The decision to launch FastJet with the Airbus A319 enables us to expand rapidly with each aircraft
potentially carrying around 250,000 passengers a year. Rubicon expects passenger numbers to
double from current levels within six months of the introduction of the A319 fleet.


a''We plan to add at least five leased Airbus A319 aircraft to the fleet within six months of launch and
up to 15 within a year.a''


John Leahy, Airbus Chief Commercial Officer Customers, added:


 a''We are delighted that FastJet has chosen the A319 as the basis for its fleet, a further endorsement
for the efficiency and reliability of Airbusa'' market leading single aisle family of aircraft.


a''FastJet will open up low cost travel to the African market, and the Airbus A319 will bring new levels
of comfort to air passengers across Africa. It is a great combination.a''


The Airbus A319 has proven itself an ideal aircraft for the low cost airline model in other parts of the
world. The 156 seat A319 was initially chosen after an extensive evaluation of a wide range of
options and is ideally suited to the Companya''s expansion plans. Leasing aircraft on operating leases
enables the airline to match its rate of growth closely to market requirements.


The first aircraft will be leased from Nomura Babcock Brown Co., Ltd. (BBAM Aircraft Management
LLC), and is scheduled for delivery in September/October. BBAM is the worlda''s third largest aircraft
lessor, managing a portfolio of over 450 aircraft. Negotiations on further aircraft deliveries later in
the year are underway.

Rubicon announced on 29 June the successful completion of its deal with Lonrho Aviation and its
airline Fly540, providing the merged group with existing aviation platforms in Ghana, Kenya,
Tanzania and Angola. Lonrho Plc owns 74.9% of the London-listed aviation business and Steliosa''
easyGroup will own 5%.


David Lenigas, Executive Chairman of Rubicon and of Lonrho Plc, stated:


a''FastJet has already stated its intent to raise the bar on air safety in Africa by operating its aircraft
under the same strict rules that apply to European carriers. To this end, we expect to sign an
agreement with a major European MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) company for the
maintenance of its new A319 fleet in the coming months.a''


a''Our management team has been actively engaged in detailed discussions with a number of
Governments to lobby for incentives and reduced passenger taxes, factors that will affect our final
decision on where to deploy the first A319s.a''

For further information please contact:

Rubicon Diversified Investments Plc                               Tel: +44 (0) 20 7887 1421
Ed Winter
David Lenigas
Geoffrey White
Richard Blakesley


Citigate Dewe Rogerson (on behalf of Rubicon and FastJet)         Tel: +44 (0) 20 7638 9571
Angharad Couch
Sally Marshak
Eleni Menikou


W.H. Ireland Ltd.                                                 Tel: +44 (0) 20 7220 1666
James Joyce
Nick Field


Airbus                                                            Tel: +33562118642
Susie Crowley


NOTES TO EDITORS

Rubicon Diversified Investments Plc


Rubicon was incorporated on 8 February 2006 and admitted to AIM on 6 September 2006, originally
as a software company.


At a General Meeting on 21 December 2011, a new investing policy was adopted of seeking an
acquisition or acquisitions in the global aviation and aviation services sector with a particular focus
on Africa. Following the meeting David Lenigas and Geoffrey White, Chairman and CEO respectively
of Lonrho Plc, joined the Rubicon Board and a share placing was undertaken raising A#400,000.
On 5 December 2011, Rubicon entered into a conditional letter of intent with easyGroup, under
which easyGroup would become a shareholder in Rubicon and that the Company would use the
consulting services of Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou and easyGroupa''s experienced aviation management
team to provide general advice on the feasibility of implementing a low-cost, point-to-point, no frills,
all jet airline business model for Africa. The Company then raised a further A#9,000,000 in December
2011 by way of a placing of 225,000,000 ordinary shares at 4p per share.


For further information, please see www.rubicondiv.co.uk

Lonrho Aviation and Fly540


Lonrho entered the regional air travel market in Africa in October 2005 with the acquisition of 49%
of Five Forty Aviation Limited (a''Fly540a''). Fly540 commenced operations in Kenya in November 2006
on its inaugural route, Nairobi to Mombasa. Operations from Dar es Salaam in Tanzania started in
2007, operations in Angola began from Cabinda the third hub airport in January 2011 and Ghanaian
services began from the Companya''s fourth regional hub in Accra in December 2011. This roll-out has
established four strategic pan-African hubs, giving Fly540 a network spanning West, East and South-
West Africa. The route network can be seen at www.fly540.com and www.fly540africa.com.


Lonrho Aviation owns four and leases a further six aircraft, six of which operate from Jomo Kenyatta
International Airport in Kenya and neighbouring Tanzania, three serve the Angola International
Airport hub in Luanda, and one services routes in Ghana between Kotoka International Airport in
Accra and Tamale, Kumasi and Takoradi. The East Africa hubs carry approximately 40,000 passengers
per month, and the Angola and Ghana hubs carry approximately 13,000 and 9,000 passengers per
month respectively.

The Low-cost Airline Model


The low-cost airline model seeks to attract large numbers of additional passengers by offering
significantly lower fares. The fares need to be low enough to persuade people who did not
previously travel by air to do so, and others to travel more often. The global experience of launching
a low-cost carrier is that it creates a completely new market rather than simply driving down prices
in the existing market.

Significant African Aviation Market Potential


Africa is a growth aviation market with regional and intercontinental traffic both growing rapidly as a
result of the continenta''s continued economic expansion. With over one billion people, Africa is
hampered by poor infrastructure, a lack of roads and railways and long distances between urban
populations. The African aviation market is significantly underserved with air travel spending as a
percentage of GDP a fraction of that of other emerging markets. With rapid economic growth and,
as a result, the growing wealth of African citizens, more and more people will be able to benefit from
aviation and fly for the first time. Airbus forecasts total passenger traffic in Africa will grow at an
average yearly rate of 5.7% between 2010 and 2030, well above the 4.8 per cent world average
growth rate and expects to deliver more than 1,100 new passenger aircraft, 4% of world deliveries,
in the next 20 years to satisfy growing demand. Seven of the top 10 fastest growing global
economies are now in Africa with consumer spending for the continent forecast to reach US$1.6
trillion by 2020. A recent McKinsey report (June 2010) forecast that 128 million households in Africa
are expected to have discretionary income to spend by 2020, while 50% of Africans are expected to
live in cities by the same date with urban jobs bringing rising incomes. The McKinsey report
concluded that today the rate of return on foreign investment in Africa is higher than in any other
developing region and that early entry into African economies provides opportunities to create
markets, establish brands, shape industry structure, influence consumer preferences and establish
long-term relationships.a''


For further information on Lonrho Plc please contact:
Lonrho Plc       +44 (0) 20 7016 5105
David Lenigas
Geoffrey White
David Armstrong


FTI Consulting +44 (0) 20 7831 3113
Edward Westropp
Georgina Bonham



3 July 2012

South African sponsor

Date: 03/07/2012 08:25:00 Supplied by www.sharenet.co.za                     
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