Trans European Airways (UK) Limited

Wyles Hardy & Co were instructed by the Liquidators to manage the private treaty sale of assets for the distressed Trans European Airways (UK) Ltd. (TEA), a once-prominent Belgian airline, that operated from 1971 to 1991.

In the early 1970s TEA became the first airline to order an Airbus and subsequently operated the only Airbus A300B1 variant to be used in public service. The company was involved in Operation Moses in 1984-1985, and then started to expand rapidly during the late 1980s, forming subsidiaries in the United Kingdom (TEA-UK), France (TEA-FRANCE), Italy (TEA-ITALY) and Switzerland (TEA-BASEL), but the global economic downturn in the early nineties, partly as a result of the Gulf War, caused it to go into liquidation on 27 September 1991.

Following TEA’s insolvency, Wyles Hardy & Co, conducted a comprehensive valuation of the airline’s extensive fleet, aviation-related equipment, and operational infrastructure, ensuring a smooth and efficient disposal process that aligned with legal and financial obligations.

The individual private treaty sales, a method often preferred for high-value and specialised assets, allowed Wyles Hardy & Co to strategically market Trans European Airways’ assets to targeted buyers across the aviation sector. By leveraging our network and industry knowledge, the firm successfully attracted competitive offers from qualified buyers, ensuring maximum asset value recovery. This high-profile case highlighted Wyles Hardy & Co’s ability to navigate complex insolvency proceedings, further cementing our reputation as a trusted leader in asset disposal and corporate recovery solutions.