Gama Aviation responds to report of legal action

Gama Aviation responded to a press report over the weekend regarding legal action between the company and one of its former directors, Dustin Dryden.

According to the Sunday Times, Dryden is suing Gama for up to £10m. It said the legal battle began last November, when Gama sued two companies linked to Dryden for £432,855, alleging that it had suffered losses due to Dryden's "conduct as a director".

Gama was not able to comment on the details of the action itself as it is ongoing, but the company did provide some background on Monday, saying the action relates to a series of claims and counter-claims filed between the parties from November 2016 to February 2017.

In July, the court ordered that these various claims be consolidated into a single action, which is now scheduled for a hearing in June 2018. A total of around £850,000 is being claimed by Gama from entities associated with Dryden, principally in respect of unpaid trade receivables for services rendered.

Around £6.1m is being claimed from the company resulting from a host of allegations ranging from failure to provide goods or services to associated losses and damages.

"The directors of Gama Aviation have carefully considered the implications for the company of each of these claims at the time they were made and have continued to do so on a regular basis subsequently, including receiving advice from its solicitors and counsel."

Gama said that in respect of the claims made by the company against the Dryden entities, the amounts receivable have either been provided for in full or are appropriately secured. The provisions were principally made in the latest audited financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2016. It added that all trading relationships with the Dryden entities ended at the end of 2015 with only a small amount of work in progress falling into the first half of 2016.

At 1010 BST, the shares were down 4% to 242.43p.