Spirit AeroSystems faces delays in two acquisitions

US-based Spirit AeroSystems continues trying to complete two acquisitions it had hoped to finish earlier this year, according to the head of the aerospace parts manufacturer.

Spirit, which had expected to close its acquisition of Belgium-based aircraft parts maker Asco Industries by April, is “still working to meet the conditions of the European Commission on that deal”, said Tom Gentile, Spirit’s president and CEO. The deadline for completing the USD420 million transaction is 1 October.

Spirit had also expected to buy three Bombardier aerostructure facilities in Morocco, Northern Ireland, and the US in the first half of 2020, but some conditions of the nearly USD1.1 billion deal “remain outstanding”, Gentile told analysts this month. The deadline for that acquisition is 31 October.

The Asco acquisition will increase Spirit’s content on the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. The Bombardier purchase will help Spirit grow its Airbus content and reduce its dependence on Boeing, which is its largest customer.