HEICO Corporation to Acquire Storied Aviation and Defense Company
Rhea-AI Summary
HEICO (NYSE:HEI) agreed to acquire Axillon Aerospace's Fuel Containment business for cash, with financial terms not disclosed. HEICO said the deal is expected to be accretive to earnings within the year following closing. Closing is subject to customary conditions, including Hart-Scott-Rodino clearance, and is expected in the first calendar quarter of 2026. Axillon Fuel Containment, based in Rockmart, GA, employs approximately 530 people in a nearly 600,000 square foot facility and makes MIL‑SPEC, crashworthy and often ballistically tolerant fuel cells used on many US military aircraft and defense platforms.
Axillon Fuel Containment will remain at its current facilities, keep its management team, and change its name post-closing; SK Capital will retain Axillon's Engineered Composites business.
Positive
- Deal expected accretive to earnings within one year
- Adds ~530 employees and a nearly 600,000 sq ft engineering and manufacturing facility
- Mission‑critical MIL‑SPEC products used across major US military aircraft and defense platforms
Negative
- Financial terms not disclosed, leaving purchase price and financing impact unclear
- Closing subject to Hart‑Scott‑Rodino clearance, creating regulatory timing risk
- Integration and name change risks despite statement that no material staff turnover is expected
News Market Reaction 1 Alert
On the day this news was published, HEI gained 2.36%, reflecting a moderate positive market reaction.
Data tracked by StockTitan Argus on the day of publication.
Agrees to acquire Axillon Fuel Containment
ROCKMART, GA AND MIAMI, FL / ACCESS Newswire / November 10, 2025 / HEICO Corporation (NYSE:HEI.A)(NYSE:HEI) today announced that its Electronic Technologies Group has agreed to acquire Axillon Aerospace's Fuel Containment Business ("Axillon Fuel Containment") from affiliates of SK Capital Partners, LP ("SK Capital") for cash payable at closing. Financial terms and details were not disclosed. SK Capital will continue to own Axillon Aerospace's Engineered Composites business.
HEICO stated that it expects the acquisition to be accretive to its earnings within the year following closing.
Axillon Fuel Containment is the leading military specification ("MIL-SPEC") fuel-cell designer and manufacturer for US-built military aircraft, as well as certain commercial aircraft and military ground vehicles. Its products provide crashworthy and, often, ballistically tolerant fuel cells on a broad range of aircraft and defense systems, including, among many others, the F-16, F-15, F/A-18, CH-47 Chinook, KC 135, B-52, AH-64 Apache, V-22 Osprey and the Bradley Fighting Vehicle. Axillon Fuel Containment also makes sealants used in aerospace and defense applications.
Originally part of Goodyear Tire & Rubber, Axillon Fuel Containment pioneered self-sealing fuel tanks during World War II and later created the world's first crashworthy fuel-cell. Its products are mission-critical and life-saving items relied on by the US military, along with numerous aircraft and defense manufacturers.
Based in Rockmart, GA, Axillon Fuel Containment employs approximately 530 people in the business' nearly 600,000 square foot engineering, manufacturing and management facility located there. Axillon Fuel Containment will remain in its current facilities after closing and HEICO stated that it does not expect any material staff turnover at Axillon Fuel Containment. Further, Axillon Fuel Containment will continue to be overseen by its current management team, led by Tom Holst.
Closing is subject to customary closing conditions, including clearance under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act. HEICO stated that it expects the closing to occur in the first calendar quarter of 2026. Axillon Fuel Containment's name will change post-closing to a name that will soon be selected.
Eric A. Mendelson and Victor H. Mendelson, HEICO's Co-Chairmen and Chief Executive Officers, commented, "Axillon Fuel Containment adds a storied and highly-regarded business to HEICO. Its products are the standard on a wide array of aircraft for both new production and aftermarket use. These highly reliable and mission-critical products are designed and produced by an amazing group of talented people working diligently to support our Country's military and several commercial aircraft makers. We are honored to have this special company within HEICO and look forward to welcoming all of Axillon Fuel Containment's Team Members to the HEICO family."
Tom Holst, Axillon Fuel Containment's General Manager, commented, "We are delighted that Axillon Fuel Containment's new home will be at HEICO, which is known for its excellent culture, commitment to its Team Members and its reputation for excellent quality delivered to its customers. I couldn't think of a better home for our company and for our Team Members."
Guggenheim Securities and Lazard served as financial advisors to Axillon Aerospace, and Latham & Watkins LLP acted as legal counsel. Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP acted as legal counsel to HEICO.
HEICO Corporation is engaged primarily in the design, production, servicing and distribution of products and services to certain niche segments of the aviation, defense, space, medical, telecommunications and electronics industries through its Hollywood, Florida-based Flight Support Group and its Miami, Florida-based Electronic Technologies Group. HEICO's customers include a majority of the world's airlines and overhaul shops, as well as numerous defense and space contractors and military agencies worldwide, in addition to medical, telecommunications and electronics equipment manufacturers. For more information about HEICO, please visit our website at https://www.heico.com.
About Axillon Aerospace
Axillon Aerospace is a leading provider of engineered carbon fiber composite components and fuel containment solutions for the defense and commercial aerospace markets. The business generates annual sales of approximately
About SK Capital
SK Capital is a transformational private investment firm with a disciplined focus on the specialty materials, ingredients, and life sciences sectors. The firm seeks to build resilient, sustainable, and growing businesses that create substantial long-term value. SK Capital aims to utilize its industry, operating, and investment experience to identify opportunities to transform businesses into higher performing organizations with improved strategic positioning, growth, and profitability, as well as lower operating risk. SK Capital currently has approximately
Certain statements in this press release constitute forward-looking statements, which are subject to risks, uncertainties and contingencies. HEICO's actual results may differ materially from those expressed in or implied by those forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause such differences include, among others: the severity, magnitude and duration of public health threats, such as the COVID-19 pandemic; our liquidity and the amount and timing of cash generation; lower commercial air travel, airline fleet changes or airline purchasing decisions, which could cause lower demand for our goods and services; product specification costs and requirements, which could cause an increase in our costs to complete contracts; governmental and regulatory demands, export policies and restrictions, reductions in defense, space or homeland security spending by U.S. and/or foreign customers or competition from existing and new competitors, which could reduce our sales; our ability to introduce new products and services at profitable pricing levels, which could reduce our sales or sales growth; product development or manufacturing difficulties, which could increase our product development and manufacturing costs and delay sales; cyber security events or other disruptions of our information technology systems could adversely affect our business; and our ability to make acquisitions, including obtaining any applicable domestic and/or foreign governmental approvals, and achieve operating synergies from acquired businesses; customer credit risk; interest, foreign currency exchange and income tax rates; and economic conditions, including the effects of inflation, within and outside of the aviation, defense, space, medical, telecommunications and electronics industries, which could negatively impact our costs and revenues. Parties receiving this material are encouraged to review all of HEICO's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission including, but not limited to, filings on Form 10-K, Form 10-Q and Form 8-K. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent required by applicable law.
Contact:
Victor H. Mendelson (305) 374-1745 ext. 7590
Carlos L. Macau, Jr. (954) 987-4000 ext. 7570
SOURCE: HEICO Corporation
View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire
FAQ
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