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Swirling questions over source of EZjet

March 4, 2012 | By | Filed Under News 

 

 

 

- Owner reveals he holds full-time job in US, has US$348,000 mortgage on Florida home

- charter loses US$3M since December launch

With the government already denying that former President Bharrat Jagdeo and his best friend

EZjet’s CEO, Sonny Ramdeo

Ranjisingh ‘Bobby’ Ramroop, have links to new charter EZjet, there are burning questions about the source of financing for the US-based charter company.
EZJet started flying the New York- Guyana route in mid-December.
Already, according to initial figures, the company has racked up more than US$3M ($600M) in losses and under current market conditions, is unlikely to ever make a profit.
This is raising even more questions about how the investor ever found the initiative feasible.
Recently, Head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr. Roger Luncheon denied that former President Jagdeo had any financial interests in EZjet. He said that the funding was being provided by “American Guyanese.”
But when Sonny Ramdeo, the man who said that he founded the charter, called Kaieteur News, he insisted that he was the sole person providing the finance at this stage.
He said that there are “sleeping” investors who have provided reserve funding.
Airline officials are wondering whether there is more than meets the eye on this charter, since despite plugging and spending millions on the initiative, the owner still holds a full-time job as a payroll director at a health care facility in the US.
Ramdeo disclosed, too, that he has a US$348,000 mortgage on his Fort Lauderdale, Florida home.
Investigations by Kaieteur News have revealed that the charter company which made its first flight to Guyana on December 15, even when fully booked, would barely recover half of the hefty US$150,000 it costs to operate a return trip between New York and Georgetown.
The US company applied under the Jagdeo administration and was granted the approval.
The owner and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of EZjet, Sonny Ramdeo, during telephone interviews with this publication is insisting that he has no local investors from Guyana. He is the principal in the charter and it is his money, he claims.
Guyanese had suffered several bad experiences in the past after a number of charter companies left suddenly, he said. In instances, hundreds of passengers were left stranded and unable to recover their ticket money.
Ramdeo said that this and the treatment Guyanese got when coming through Trinidad forced him to start the charter. He said that on one occasion when he was coming to Guyana, and he says that he does so about 12 times a year, he was almost stripped naked.
Ramdeo, who said he made his money as an investment banker in the US, has himself made some startling revelations about EZjet’s finances.

 

Bad investment
EZjet is currently conducting five round trips weekly between the two destinations.
Officials in the airline industry said that they were surprised when EZjet was announced into the local market and introduced the current price structure. There was not much fanfare for the announcement.
“It is mind-boggling. Even if you own your own aircraft, it is difficult… even if you put passengers on the wings, it would be unprofitable,” a senior airline official said.
“This is one of the riskiest businesses on the face of the earth. With fuel price as it is on the high side, no one individual and a few persons would be willing to invest the kind of money that is needed for a charter like this.”
The company, according to Ramdeo is spending around US$73,000 on fuel and another US$74,000 to rent the Boeing 767-200 along with crew from Dynamic Aviation, a company based in Bridgewater, Virginia, US.
The fuel cost is computed on a flying time of 11.5 hours round trip. Ramdeo says that he buys fuel at US$3.50 per gallon in the United States. In Guyana he would pay no less that US$5 per gallon

The EZjet’s Boeing 767-200 plane acquired on a wet lease from Dynamics Airways.

However, the current “low” price of US$529 on average for a return ticket makes it unfeasible since US terminal fees alone is US$52 per passenger. The ticket also includes handling and a 10% agency fees and 15% overhead costs, which all have to be discounted leaving EZjet with around US$350 for each ticket sold.
Assuming that all 218 seats of the plane are sold, EZjet would be raking in around US$80,000 – this is US$70,000 short of the US$150,000 it normally costs to operate each return flight New York and Georgetown.
Ramdeo said that his wet lease—aircraft and crew—costs US$74,000 per round trip. He added that his catering bill is US$1,600; that he buys fuel in the United States at US$3:10 per gallon and that he buys 1,500 gallons.
He says that these things allow him to operate a cheap airline when compared with Delta and Caribbean Airlines.
Another shocking revelation is that since the flights started in December, EZjet has been doing poorly, with its January 2012 manifests indicating an average of around 92 passengers per flight…or about 42% full.  On two occasions in December, days before Christmas, it even flew almost empty with six and seven passengers on consecutive flights.
And the baffling questions are many. Why would Ramdeo plug millions into a losing project that hinges on fuel prices which analysts say are likely to rise even further in coming months?

 

Emotional investment
The CEO has his own explanations why EZjet entered the Guyana market.
“I come to Guyana (often). I am Guyanese. I see people frustrated with travelling…they don’t have a choice.”
However, airline officials said that emotions hardly have any place in the industry.
Ramdeo insists that he is shopping smart for fuel and even making savings on catered food, something that has left airlines like Delta and Caribbean Airlines with huge tabs, which ultimately affect the ticket prices.
“We don’t look at passengers as dollars. We look at them as repeat customers. Some of them have even traveled five-six times with us.”
Ramdeo, a former villager of Windsor Forest, West Coast Demerara, also stressed that EZjet is not burdened with huge overheads like union fees- factors that Delta and Caribbean Airlines have to deal with.
“The Catch-22 is that our product is better than the two.”
Asked whether the company has been profitable, Ramdeo said that “actually our name has been building…we anticipated some losses…we have not had any substantial loss to capital.”
He insisted that his passenger load was up to 85% per trip during the recent Carnival in Trinidad and Tobago when there were “two weeks of full flights”.
For EZjet to get permission to fly the New York/Georgetown route, it had to deposit up to US$200,000 with the US Department of Transportation. There are no stringent background checks as in the case of a full-fledged airline. There are little checks to determine the viability, experience of the players or even whether the money comes from illegal sources.
In Guyana, a similar sum of US$200,000, that would reimburse passengers in case of problems, had to be lodged with the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority. Like the US, Guyana is not too insistent on conducting too much of an in-depth check into the source of financing and other due diligence checks on the charter companies.

 

Expansion
Ramdeo, despite the losses, is now looking to make EZjet bigger by reducing the five weekly flights to four and adding the Toronto/Georgetown route. Destinations like Trinidad and Barbados and a smaller plane are also on the horizon.
And comments from Ramdeo in justifying the investments are even more puzzling.
“Upfront, I am a businessman like everybody else. One of the things that irk me now even from the days of (President) Jagdeo is that they allow Caribbean Airlines to do what they want.”
To make things harder for EZjet to survive, Ramdeo admitted that his company is not getting a fuel subsidy like Caribbean Airlines which buys fuel for just over US$1 for a gallon. The charter company pays at least US$5 per gallon in Guyana and as he claims, US$3.10 in the US.
“And they (Caribbean Airlines) are operating at a loss. That is what you call mismanagement.”

Replies sorted oldest to newest

EZjet is an international discount airline that is modeled after SouthWest Airlines of the United States. It is in many countries and a partial ownership of its stock is listed on the London Stock Exchange.  It is a British based international discount airline.  The owner of EZjet is owned Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou.  He is a British Greek Cypriot.  Despite his name I don't think he is muslim but likely Greek orthodox Christian.  His father was a billionaire Greek shipping magnate.  Who helped him to start the airline.  The airline is a billion dollar business. There is no way in heaven or hell that Mr. Jagdeo owns that airline.

FM
Originally Posted by Wally:

EZjet is an international discount airline that is modeled after SouthWest Airlines of the United States. It is in many countries and a partial ownership of its stock is listed on the London Stock Exchange.  It is a British based international discount airline.  The owner of EZjet is owned Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou.  He is a British Greek Cypriot.  Despite his name I don't think he is muslim but likely Greek orthodox Christian.  His father was a billionaire Greek shipping magnate.  Who helped him to start the airline.  The airline is a billion dollar business. There is no way in heaven or hell that Mr. Jagdeo owns that airline.

So . . . are Luncheon and Ramdeo LYING!?

FM
Originally Posted by Wally:

EZjet is an international discount airline that is modeled after SouthWest Airlines of the United States. It is in many countries and a partial ownership of its stock is listed on the London Stock Exchange.  It is a British based international discount airline.  The owner of EZjet is owned Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou.  He is a British Greek Cypriot.  Despite his name I don't think he is muslim but likely Greek orthodox Christian.  His father was a billionaire Greek shipping magnate.  Who helped him to start the airline.  The airline is a billion dollar business. There is no way in heaven or hell that Mr. Jagdeo owns that airline.

This is not the same company as the EZJet currently flying to Guyana. The name of the airline operating in Europe is EasyJet.

Mars
Originally Posted by God:
Originally Posted by Wally:

EZjet is an international discount airline that is modeled after SouthWest Airlines of the United States. It is in many countries and a partial ownership of its stock is listed on the London Stock Exchange.  It is a British based international discount airline.  The owner of EZjet is owned Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou.  He is a British Greek Cypriot.  Despite his name I don't think he is muslim but likely Greek orthodox Christian.  His father was a billionaire Greek shipping magnate.  Who helped him to start the airline.  The airline is a billion dollar business. There is no way in heaven or hell that Mr. Jagdeo owns that airline.

This is not the same company as the EZJet currently flying to Guyana. The name of the airline operating in Europe is EasyJet.

God's right.  It is a different airline.  I was refering to Easyjet.  This EZjet has rented a plane from
Dynamic Avation.  They have a 767 jet that they bought recently.  Maybe that is the one that is being rented.

FM

The airline business is a terrible business---only a moron would invest in the airline business. EZ Jet is guaranteed to fail---just like Guyana Airways, Guy-American airways and the other airlines that were started years ago.

 

Rev

FM

Who cares about viable 'business model(s)' when an unending flow of unearned US$ millions are mainlined every year into the veins of Bobby Ramroop's companies . . . through no questions asked, single source "procurement" . . . of course!!

FM
Originally Posted by redux:

Who cares about viable 'business model(s)' when an unending flow of unearned US$ millions are is mainlined every year into the veins of Bobby Ramroop's companies . . . through no questions asked, single source "procurement" . . . of course!!

[sp]

FM
Originally Posted by Wally:

I would never invest in an airline, clothing store company,  restaurant company or a car company.  They are very high risk businesses.

How about a brothel,beer garden and banga mary shop, Mista Wally?

FM

EZJET is short for EZjet GT Inc.

 

Plus anyone can use another name as a DBA as long as it is approved by the state where the corpration was opened.

 

It is easy for our "armchair analysts" on the forum to have an opinion, in most cases, without merit.

 

It is because of EZJET that the prices for flights to Guyana is now affordable.

 

CA finally decided to have direct flights even though 100% Guyanese demanded this option for many decades.

 

Delta and CA prices fell by $200 - $300 per flight. Why?

 

RHEDC is proud to promote EZJET as it is a business along Liberty Ave.

 

We are also authorized to book flights on EZJET.

 

Please visit www.RichmondHillEDC.org for more information

 

 

Vish M

Universal Airlines went bu$$er up because of poor managment and water wash no good bragging linconpoops.I will post some important infomation soon as i did on the other forum.Brigadier David Granger is opening the secret skeleton closets one by one,i am looking at a popular PPP figure  coming forward and spilling his/her Guts(Plea Bargain before court proceedings)

FM
Originally Posted by Rev Al:

The airline business is a terrible business---only a moron would invest in the airline business. EZ Jet is guaranteed to fail---just like Guyana Airways, Guy-American airways and the other airlines that were started years ago.

 

Rev


Guyana Airways  was one of the most profitable corp.n GY until the PPP govt took over and bankrupted it.

Pointblank
Originally Posted by Vish M:

EZJET is short for EZjet GT Inc.

 

Plus anyone can use another name as a DBA as long as it is approved by the state where the corpration was opened.

 

It is easy for our "armchair analysts" on the forum to have an opinion, in most cases, without merit.

 

It is because of EZJET that the prices for flights to Guyana is now affordable.

 

CA finally decided to have direct flights even though 100% Guyanese demanded this option for many decades.

 

Delta and CA prices fell by $200 - $300 per flight. Why?

 

RHEDC is proud to promote EZJET as it is a business along Liberty Ave.

 

We are also authorized to book flights on EZJET.

 

Please visit www.RichmondHillEDC.org for more information

 

 

My God!! What a disgraceful response . . .

 

Did you bother to [even] cursorily examine the incredible [and insulting] 'story' put out by Sonny Ramdeo regarding EZJET's current financing and "sleeping" investors?

 

I look forward to another "PROUD" endorsement by the RHEDC when Fip Motilall floats a piece of his 'company' in a private placement . . .

FM
Unlike all your Chatter about businesses in Guyana and you folks up north pontificating about your importance.
 
RHEDC is supporting Business Development in our community. We will be promoting the Airline during the Next Phagwah Parade.
 
 
Originally Posted by redux:
Originally Posted by Vish M:

EZJET is short for EZjet GT Inc.

 

Plus anyone can use another name as a DBA as long as it is approved by the state where the corpration was opened.

 

It is easy for our "armchair analysts" on the forum to have an opinion, in most cases, without merit.

 

It is because of EZJET that the prices for flights to Guyana is now affordable.

 

CA finally decided to have direct flights even though 100% Guyanese demanded this option for many decades.

 

Delta and CA prices fell by $200 - $300 per flight. Why?

 

RHEDC is proud to promote EZJET as it is a business along Liberty Ave.

 

We are also authorized to book flights on EZJET.

 

Please visit www.RichmondHillEDC.org for more information

 

 

My God!! What a disgraceful response . . .

 

Did you bother to [even] cursorily examine the incredible [and insulting] 'story' put out by Sonny Ramdeo regarding EZJET's current financing and "sleeping" investors?

 

I look forward to another "PROUD" endorsement by the RHEDC when Fip Motilall floats a piece of his 'company' in a private placement . . .

Vish M

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