The European Commission has cleared Blackstone and Tinicum to take joint control of UK aerospace supplier Senior plc and US-based AeroFlow Technologies, removing a regulatory hurdle for the cross-border transaction. The approval, granted under the EU Merger Regulation, covers assets tied to aerospace components and lets the private-equity investors proceed with ownership changes in the sector.
The case was examined in Brussels under the simplified merger review procedure, with the Commission concluding that the combined market position would remain limited and that competition concerns were unlikely. Market coverage placed the deal at about £1.3 billion. The transaction spans industrial assets in the UK and the US and comes as private equity continues to consolidate parts of the aerospace supply chain.
Senior, a supplier to aircraft manufacturers and engine makers, and AeroFlow are expected to move under joint control once the deal closes. The clearance follows recent scrutiny of larger industrial transactions in Europe, where the Commission has increasingly used streamlined review where market overlap appears modest.