EasyJet Founder Escalates Feud With Board Over Jet Order
- Haji-Ioannou calls shareholder meeting to oust single director
- Carrier’s $5.6 billion deal with Airbus at center of dispute
Photographer: Jason Alden/Bloomberg
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EasyJet Plc’s founder escalated his feud with the board, calling for the ouster of a director in a bid to pressure the discount airline into canceling a 4.5 billion-pound ($5.6 billion) aircraft order.
Stelios Haji-Ioannou, EasyJet’s biggest owner with a 34% stake, proposed a general meeting to remove director Andreas Bierwirth, according to a letter sent late Wednesday to the airline’s chairman, John Barton. He threatened to challenge one non-executive director every seven weeks, tying up the board with a series of cumbersome and divisive general meetings until it succumbs.