Two of PLAY’s Largest Shareholders Seek to Take Over the Company

Two of the largest shareholders in the airline PLAY are planning to make a takeover offer for all outstanding shares in the company and delist it from the stock exchange. Alongside the offer, a share capital increase would take place.

The takeover group, led by CEO Einar Örn Ólafsson and Vice Chairman of the Board Elías Skúli Skúlason, intends to continue promoting competition in the Icelandic aviation market to benefit consumers, operating under the PLAY brand by offering affordable fares for Icelanders and tourists alike.

The group plans to focus on the following key operational areas:

• Strong offering of flights from Iceland to sunny destinations.
• All flights to North America to cease as of October 2025.
• Fewer city destinations in Northern Europe.
• Operations will continue under a Maltese Air Operator Certificate (AOC), and the Icelandic AOC will be returned.
• Four aircraft will operate flights to and from Iceland, mainly to sunny destinations.
• The remaining six aircraft will be leased to other airlines in profitable ACMI projects.
• The company will be delisted from the stock exchange.
• Increased emphasis on the company’s offices in Malta and Lithuania.

In short, passengers flying from Iceland will not notice any changes in service. The airline’s branding and aircraft appearance will remain the same. The aircraft will still be red, the crews will remain Icelandic, and they will continue working under Icelandic labor agreements.

The takeover group will offer ISK 1 per share, and sellers may choose to receive payment either in shares of the new company or in cash.

With these changes, the takeover group aims to strengthen the company’s focus on profitable operations, including flights to sunny destinations and aircraft leasing, while discontinuing the less successful parts of the business—namely, U.S. flights and connecting services.

The acquiring entity will be funded with a minimum investment of USD 20 million, of which commitments have already been secured for more than one-third.

Einar Örn Ólafsson, investor and CEO of PLAY:

“This is primarily a plan for practical changes to the operations of the Icelandic airline PLAY. We’re focusing on the profitable aspects of the business—sun destination flights—and discontinuing those that have not yielded results.

We look forward to continuing to foster competition in the aviation market with our red aircraft and Icelandic crews. Our main goal remains to offer Icelanders affordable flights to the sun.”