A prospective £2.7 billion merger between Dundee-founded service firm BBA Aviation and Dubai Aerospace Enterprise has been called off.
The two had been locked in talks over an agreement which it was thought could lead to the creation of a new entity.
BBA, which started out in 1879 as a small industrial belting works in Dundee and counted Henry Ford among its early clients, is a specialist provider of aircraft services such as refuelling, baggage handling, cleaning and de-icing and is valued at £1.4bn.
It made its first significant move into the aviation market in 1986 with the acquisition of UK-based landing gear and hydraulics business APPH and the purchase of a similar business in the US.
BBA, which saw profits increase by 14% in the first half of this year to $63.2 million and turnover move 2% ahead to $1.1bn, has since expanded significantly and employs more than 12,000 staff across Europe, the US and South America.
But it yesterday confirmed that talks with DAE over the future of its Arizona-based engine repair and maintenance business Standard Aero had terminated.
The merger would have seen the company almost double in size and further boost its presence Stateside, where three-quarters of group revenues are now generated.