EasyJet agrees to 5.7bn takeover by US firm

EasyJet agrees to £5.7bn takeover by US firm No-frills airline EasyJet has agreed to be taken over in a £5.7bn deal by US firm Apollo after a rival bidder dropped out. The takeover was agreed after US investment firm Castlelake, which had made a series of offers for the carrier, said it was withdrawing from the bid battle. Apollo said it wants to help the airline grow and that it does not intend to cut any jobs in the first 12 months after the takeover has been completed, implying that passengers can expect largely the same service. EasyJet is one of Europe's largest airlines. It employs more than 19,000 people, and flies around 1,200 routes across 35 European countries.