Rockwell Collins completes acquisition of ARINC Inc

Rockwell Collins Inc today announced it has successfully completed the acquisition of ARINC Inc from the Carlyle Group for $1.4 billion. “With this move we take a major leap forward to realising our vision of providing a richer set of seamless information management solutions that encompass the aircraft and ground-based systems,” said Kelly Ortberg, CEO and President of Rockwell Collins. “The acquisition represents an exciting new growth platform for Rockwell Collins and shifts the balance of the company towards the expanding commercial aviation sector.”

“Combining ARINC’s high-performance, high-quality and high-assurance networks and services with our information systems onboard the aircraft strengthens our ability to deliver improved efficiency and safety, and enhanced connectivity,” added Ortberg. “In addition, the acquisition opens up adjacent market opportunities by leveraging ARINC’s strong presence in airport information systems and the broader transportation and security segments.”

The company expects the impact of the acquisition to be EPS accretive once certain transaction and integration costs have been incurred. The majority of integration activities are expected to be completed in six to nine months. For the near term, customers can expect business as usual, and should continue to work with their current sales representatives, customer service centres and webbased resources.

To serve the best interests of the industry, and avoid any perceived conflicts of interest, Rockwell Collins has completed the sale of ARINC’s Industry Standards Organization to SAE International simultaneously with the completion of the ARINC acquisition. In addition, due to a lack of fit with its long-term strategy, Rockwell Collins has initiated preparatory efforts to divest ARINC’s Aerospace Systems Engineering and Support business, which provides military aircraft integration and modifications, maintenance, and logistics and support.