Billionaire Gerry Schwartz finally lands airline with WestJet deal

Nearly 20 years after abandoning his hostile bid for Air Canada, Gerry Schwartz finally got his airline by agreeing to buy WestJet Airlines Ltd. for $3.5 billion. Schwartz’s private equity firm Onex Corp. agreed to pay cash for Canada’s second-biggest carrier, taking the company private in one of the buyout firm’s biggest deals. Onex offered $31 a share, a 67 per cent premium to the airline’s closing price May 10. The deal is valued at $5 billion including debt, Toronto-based Onex said in a statement Monday. -- More...