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Approve the Surf Air Mobility Inc. Amended and Restated 2023 Equity Incentive Plan
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Transact such other business as may properly come before the meeting or any postponements or adjournments thereof.
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WHO MAY VOTE:
Stockholders of record at the close of business on April 26, 2024.
STOCKHOLDER LIST:
A complete list of stockholders of record of our common stock entitled to vote at the annual meeting will be maintained in our principal executive offices at 12111 S. Crenshaw Boulevard, Hawthorne, California 90250 for ten days prior to the annual meeting and will be accessible during the meeting at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/SRFM2024.
By Order of the Board of Directors,
Stan Little
Chief Executive Officer
April 29, 2024
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Table of Contents
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Notice of Annual Meeting of Stockholders
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Proxy Statement
Annual Meeting of Stockholders To Be Held June 25, 2024
Our Board of Directors is soliciting your proxy for the 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the “Annual Meeting”) to be held on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time, and at any and all postponements or adjournments of the Annual Meeting, for the purposes set forth in the Notice of Annual Meeting of Stockholders accompanying this Proxy Statement. This Proxy Statement and proxy materials are first being made available to stockholders on or about April 29, 2024.
We will be hosting the Annual Meeting via live webcast on the Internet. Any stockholder as of the record date can listen to and participate in the Annual Meeting live via the Internet at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/SRFM2024. Stockholders may vote and ask questions while connected to the Annual Meeting on the Internet.
You will not be able to attend the Annual Meeting in person.
Unless the context otherwise requires, references in this Proxy Statement to “Company,” “we,” “our,” “us,” and similar terms refer
to Surf Air Mobility Inc., a Delaware corporation.
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Important notice regarding the availability of proxy materials for the stockholder meeting to be held on June 25, 2024:
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The Notice of Annual Meeting, our Proxy Statement and our Annual Report to Stockholders are available at www.proxyvote.com.
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Surf Air Mobility Inc.
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1
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2024 Proxy Statement
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Annual Meeting of Stockholders
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TIME AND DATE
2:00 p.m.
Pacific Time on
Tuesday, June 25, 2024
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PLACE
The Annual Meeting will be hosted via live webcast on the Internet at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/SRFM2024.
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RECORD DATE
April 26, 2024
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Voting
Stockholders as of the close of business on the record date are entitled to vote.
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Vote by Internet at www.proxyvote.com
Vote during the meeting via the Internet at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/SRFM2024.
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Voting Matters
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Proposals
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FOR ALL
director nominees
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Proposal 1: Election of Directors
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FOR
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Proposal 2: Ratification of the Appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as the Company’s Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm for the Year Ending December 31, 2024
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FOR
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Proposal 3: Approval of a Reverse Stock Split
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FOR
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Proposal 4: Approval of the Surf Air Mobility Inc. Amended and Restated 2023 Equity Incentive Plan
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Surf Air Mobility Inc.
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2
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2024 Proxy Statement
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Proposal 1 —
Election of Directors
Our Board of Directors (the “Board”) is currently comprised of eight directors. Under our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (the “Certificate of Incorporation”), our Board is divided into three classes, each serving a staggered three-year term, with one class being elected at each year’s annual meeting of stockholders as follows:
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the Class A directors are Tyrone Bland and Bruce Hack, and their terms will expire at the Annual Meeting;
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the Class B directors are John D’Agostino, Stan Little and Edward Mady, and their terms will expire at the 2025 annual meeting of stockholders; and
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the Class C directors are Carl Albert, Tyler Painter and Sudhin Shahani, and their terms will expire at the 2026 annual meeting of stockholders.
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Upon the recommendation of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee of our Board, our Board has nominated each of Tyrone Bland and Bruce Hack for election to our Board as Class A directors to serve until the 2027 annual meeting of stockholders and until their respective successors are duly elected and qualified.
Proxies may only be voted for the two Class A directors nominated for election at the Annual Meeting.
Each of Tyrone Bland and Bruce Hack are standing for election to our Board for the first time since we became a publicly traded company and were initially recommended to the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee by a non-management member of our Board. Prior to being invited to join our Board, Mr. Bland and Mr. Hack were interviewed by our Board Chairman, members of our Nominating and Governance Committee and by other members of our Board. Members of our Nominating and Governance Committee and other members of our Board interviewed several other candidates before extending an invitation to Mr. Bland and Mr. Hack to join our Board.
Each of the director nominees has consented to being named in this Proxy Statement and to serving as a director, if elected. We have no reason to believe that any of the nominees will be unable or unwilling for good cause to serve if elected. However, if any nominee should become unable for any reason or unwilling for good cause to serve, the proxy holders will vote the proxies received by them for another person nominated as a substitute by the Board, or the Board may reduce the number of directors on the Board.
Biographical Descriptions
Set forth below is biographical information about each of our director nominees and continuing directors. The information below is provided as of April 9, 2024. The primary experience, qualifications, attributes, and skills of each of our director nominees that led to the conclusion of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and the Board that such nominee should serve as a member of the Board are also described below.
VOTE
THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS RECOMMENDS A VOTE
“FOR ALL”
OF THE DIRECTOR NOMINEES. UNLESS OTHERWISE INSTRUCTED, THE PROXY HOLDERS WILL VOTE THE PROXIES RECEIVED BY THEM
“FOR ALL”
THE DIRECTOR NOMINEES.
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Surf Air Mobility Inc.
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3
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2024 Proxy Statement
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Nominees for Election as Class A Directors at the Annual Meeting
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TYRONE BLAND
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Class A
Age: 53
Director Since: 2023
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POSITION AND BUSINESS EXPERIENCE
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Tyrone Bland has served as a director of the Company since July 2023. Mr. Bland has served as a Managing Partner at Porter Tellus, LLC, a strategic advising firm since May 2023. Prior to his role at Porter Tellus, LLC, Mr. Bland served as the Head of Global Government Affairs for Creative Artists Agency, LLC (“CAA”), a talent agency, from October 2020 to May 2023. Prior to CAA, Mr. Bland was Vice President of State and Local Government Relations for Herbalife Nutrition, a marketer of dietary supplements, from January 2016 to October 2020 and Managing Partner for Porter Tellus, LLC from January 2007 to January 2016. Mr. Bland received his B.A. from University of California at Los Angeles.
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KEY ATTRIBUTES
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Mr. Bland is qualified to serve on the Board based on his regulatory experience and operational leadership.
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BRUCE HACK
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Class A
Age: 75
Director Since: 2023
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POSITION AND BUSINESS EXPERIENCE
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Bruce Hack has served as a director of the Company since July 2023. Mr. Hack has served as the founder and Chief Executive Officer of BLH Venture, LLC, a strategic and financial advisory firm, since 2010. Prior to founding BLH Venture, LLC, Mr. Hack served as an Executive Vice Chairman of Activision Blizzard from 2008 to 2009 and Chief Executive Officer of Vivendi Games from 2004 to 2008. Mr. Hack also served as Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors for Universal Music Group, Inc. from 1998 to 2001 and Chief Financial Officer of Universal Studios, Inc. from 1995 to 1998. In addition, Mr. Hack served as the Executive Chairman of PowerUP Acquisition Corporation from January 2021 to August 2023, was previously Director then Chairman of Technicolor, Inc. from 2010 to 2019, and served as director of Mimedx Group, Inc. from 2010 to 2019. Mr. Hack received his B.A. from Cornell University and his M.B.A from the University of Chicago.
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KEY ATTRIBUTES
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Mr. Hack is qualified to serve on the Board based on his operational and financial expertise and public company board experience.
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Continuing Directors
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CARL ALBERT
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Class C
Age: 82
Director Since: 2023
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POSITION AND BUSINESS EXPERIENCE
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Carl Albert has served as the Chairman of the Board of the Company since July 2023. Mr. Albert served on the board of Surf Air Global Limited, a subsidiary of the Company, from 2021 until the Company’s direct listing on the NYSE. Mr. Albert has been Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Fairchild Venture Capital Corporation, a privately held investment firm, since 2000 and General Partner of Positano Premiere Properties, a privately held firm engaged in investment in real estate development and management and other investment activities, since 2003. Mr. Albert was Chairman of the Board for Boise, Inc. (NYSE: BZ) from February 2008 to November 2013. Mr. Albert was a member of the Board of Great Lakes Dredge and Dock (NASDAQ: GLDD) from July 2010 to May 2019. While a member of GLDD board, Mr. Albert served as Audit Committee Chair and member of Compensation and Nominating Governance Committees. Mr. Albert was the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Fairchild Aircraft and Fairchild Aerospace, the parent company of Fairchild Aircraft and Dornier Luftfahrt, from 1990 to 2000. Mr. Albert served as principal venture capital investor, and then Chairman, CEO and President of Wings West Airlines, managing the growth of the airline and initial public offering from 1984 to the 1988 acquisition of the company by AMR Corporation, the parent company of American Airlines. Prior to his work in the airline and aircraft manufacturing industries, Mr. Albert was an attorney specializing in business matters. Mr. Albert received his LLB at the University of California, Los Angeles, School of Law and his B.A. at the University of California, Los Angeles.
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KEY ATTRIBUTES
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Mr. Albert is qualified to serve as Chair of the Board based on his extensive business experience and industry knowledge.
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Surf Air Mobility Inc.
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4
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2024 Proxy Statement
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
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JOHN D´AGOSTINO
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Class B
Age: 48
Director Since: 2023
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POSITION AND BUSINESS EXPERIENCE
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John D’Agostino has served as a director of the Company since July 2023. Mr. D’Agostino has served as Senior Advisor at Coinbase Institutional, a digital currency asset manager, since June 2021. Prior to his role at Coinbase Institutional, Mr. D’Agostino was the US Managing Director at Waystone Governance, a provider of institutional governance, risk and compliance services to the asset management industry, from May 2015 to September 2021. From May 2017 to December 2021, Mr. D’Agostino served as a director of Midpoint Holdings Ltd. In 2021, Mr. D’Agostino was named Fellow of the AIF Institute Financial Innovation Center of Excellence. Mr. D’Agostino received his MBA from Harvard Business School, and his B.A. from Williams College.
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KEY ATTRIBUTES
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Mr. D’Agostino is qualified to serve on the Board based on his extensive corporate finance and operational leadership.
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Stan Little
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Class B
Age: 52
Director Since: 2023
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POSITION AND BUSINESS EXPERIENCE
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Stan Little has served as the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and a member of the Board since July 2023. Mr. Little has been the founder and CEO of Southern Airways Express, a subsidiary of the Company, since 2013, and has been CEO of its sister brand, Mokulele Airlines since its acquisition in February 2019. Mr. Little has been a practicing attorney since 2002 and has served as Senior Partner Emeritus at Little Barton PLLC, since September 2003. Mr. Little is admitted to both the Mississippi and Hawaii Bar Associations. Mr. Little received his J.D. from the University of Mississippi and B.A. from the University of Tennessee.
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KEY ATTRIBUTES
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Mr. Little is qualified to serve as the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and a member of the Board based on his extensive business management and industry experience.
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EDWARD MADY
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Class B
Age: 71
Director Since: 2023
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POSITION AND BUSINESS EXPERIENCE
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Edward Mady has served as a director of the Company since July 2023. Mr. Mady served as Senior Advisor and Advisory Board Member to Surf Air Global Limited from January 2017 to July 2023. Mr. Mady has served as President and COO of The Masterpiece Collection Ltd., a luxury hospitality company, since December 2023. Mr. Mady served as General Manager of The Beverly Hills Hotel and Regional Director for Dorchester Collection, a luxury hotel operator, also overseeing Hotel Bel-Air from July 2011 to February 2022. Prior to that role, Mr. Mady worked as the General Manager at the New York Palace From June 2009 to June 2011. Prior to that role, Mr. Mady worked at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company as a Vice President and Area General Manager from November 1988 to May 2009. Mr. Mady has also served as the Principal to Edward Mady LLC, a consultancy serving leaders of travel-based organizations including hospitality and aviation brands, since December 2016. Mr. Mady studied Hotel Restaurant Management at St. Clair College.
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KEY ATTRIBUTES
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Mr. Mady is qualified to serve on the Board based on his extensive management and client hospitality experience.
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Surf Air Mobility Inc.
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5
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2024 Proxy Statement
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
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TYLER PAINTER
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Class C
Age: 52
Director Since: 2023
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POSITION AND BUSINESS EXPERIENCE
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Tyler Painter has served as a director of the Company since July 2023. Mr. Painter has served as the CFO and COO of Wisk Aero, an aerospace company, since April 2022. Prior to becoming the CFO of Wisk Aero, Mr. Painter served as a Senior Advisor and acting CFO for the Company from August 2020 to April 2022. From January 2018 to October 2019, Mr. Painter served as CFO of Fair Financial Corporation, a non-profit financial program. Mr. Painter served as the CFO of Solazyme from September 2007 through October 2014 and expanded his role to include CFO and COO from October 2014 through October 2017. In August 2017, Solazyme, which had been re-named TerraVia Holdings, Inc., was acquired in a sale process conducted under Section 363 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. Prior to Solazyme, Mr. Painter served as Corporate Treasurer and VP of Finance and Investor Relations for Wind River Systems from September 2000 through April 2007. Earlier in his career, Mr. Painter held various finance roles at Cars Direct and Gap Inc. Mr. Painter holds a B.S. in business with concentration in finance from California Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo.
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KEY ATTRIBUTES
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Mr. Painter is qualified to serve on the Board based on his extensive corporate finance and operational experience.
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SUDHIN SHAHANI
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Class C
Age: 41
Director Since: 2023
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POSITION AND BUSINESS EXPERIENCE
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Sudhin Shahani has served as a director of the Company since July 2023. Mr. Shahani is the co-founder and served as the Chief Executive Officer of Surf Air Global Limited from 2013 to July 2023. Prior to his role at Surf Air, Mr. Shahani was an Entrepreneur in Residence at Anthem Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm, where he worked with a number of portfolio companies, led investments, and served on the board of Madefire from July 2013 to December 2018 and Panna from March 2012 to April 2019 (until their sale to Discovery Networks). Prior to his role at Anthem Ventures, Mr. Shahani co-founded Musicane, a digital music and social shopping network from 2004 to 2009. Mr. Shahani holds a B.S. with honors in Business Administration Entrepreneurship from Babson College.
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KEY ATTRIBUTES
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Mr. Shahani is qualified to serve as a member of the Board based on his extensive business management experience.
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VOTE
The Board of directors recommends a vote
“FOR ALL”
of the directors nominees. Unless otherwise instructed, the proxy holders will vote the proxies received by them
“FOR ALL”
the director nominees.
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Surf Air Mobility Inc.
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6
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2024 Proxy Statement
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Corporate Governance Guidelines
Our Board has adopted Corporate Governance Guidelines to assist the Board in the discharge of its duties and to set forth the Board’s current views with respect to selected corporate governance matters considered significant to our stockholders. Our Corporate Governance Guidelines direct our Board’s actions with respect to, among other things, our Board composition and director qualifications, expectations of directors, director compensation, director orientation and continuing education, succession planning and the Board’s annual performance evaluation. A current copy of our Corporate Governance Guidelines is available under “Governance” then “Governance Documents” on our website at
https://investors.surfair.com/.
Director Independence
Under the rules of the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) and our Corporate Governance Guidelines, independent directors must comprise a majority of our Board. Under the NYSE rules, a director will only qualify as an “independent director” if our Board affirmatively determines that the director, in the opinion of our Board, does not have a relationship that would interfere with the exercise of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director.
Our Board reviewed its composition and the independence of our directors and considered whether any director has a relationship with us that could interfere with his or her ability to exercise independent judgment in carrying out his or her responsibilities. In addition, the Board annually evaluates and determines the independence of each our non-employee directors under the NYSE listing standards. As a part of the evaluation process, and as part of the independence determination by the Board, the Board considers, in addition to such other factors as they may deem appropriate, each director’s occupation, personal and affiliate transactions with the Company, and other relevant direct and indirect relationships with the Company that may affect independence. Based upon information requested from and provided by each director concerning his or her background, employment, and affiliations, including family relationships, our Board has determined that each of Mr. Albert, Mr. Bland, Mr. D’Agostino, Mr. Hack and Mr. Mady qualify as independent directors, as defined under the listing rules of the NYSE, and that our Board consists of a majority of “independent directors,” as defined under the rules of the SEC and NYSE. Additionally, our Board previously determined that Ann Nelson qualified as an independent director during the period that she served as such. In making these determinations, our Board considered the relationships that each non-employee director has with us and all other facts and circumstances our Board deemed relevant in determining independence. Stan Little and Sudhin Shahani are not considered independent directors as a result of their employment by the Company. Tyler Painter is not considered an independent director as a result of his prior employment by the Company.
Board Leadership Structure
We have no policy requiring either that the positions of the Chairman of the Board and our Chief Executive Officer be separate or that they be occupied by the same individual. Our Board believes that it is important to retain flexibility to allocate the responsibilities of the offices of the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer in a way that is in our best interests and the best interests of our stockholders at a given point in time. Stan Little currently serves as our Chief Executive Officer and Carl Albert serves as independent Chairman of the Board. The Board has determined that this leadership structure is best for the Company at this time because it provides our Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Little, with the ability to focus on our day-to-day operations while allowing our Chairman, Mr. Albert, to lead our Board in its fundamental role of providing advice to and oversight of management.
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Surf Air Mobility Inc.
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7
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2024 Proxy Statement
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Board’s Role in Risk Oversight
Our Board, as a whole and through its committees, serves an active role in overseeing the management of risks related to our business. Our officers are responsible for day-to-day risk management activities. The full Board monitors risks through regular reports from each of the committee chairs and is apprised of particular risk management issues in connection with its general oversight and approval of corporate matters. The Board and its committees oversee risks associated with their respective areas of responsibility, as summarized below. Each committee meets with key management personnel and representatives of outside advisers as required.
Our Board has delegated oversight for specific areas of risk exposure to its committees as follows:
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The Audit Committee oversees the management of a variety of the Company’s risks, including through review and discussion of the Company’s guidelines and policies governing the process by which senior management of the Company and the relevant departments of the Company assess and manage the Company’s exposure to risk, and reviews major financial risk exposures facing the Company and management’s plans to monitor and control such exposures. The Audit Committee is also responsible for primary oversight related to our financial reporting, accounting, and internal controls, oversees our compliance with legal and regulatory requirements, and meets regularly with our independent registered public accounting firm.
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The Compensation Committee reviews and discusses the relationship between risk management policies and practices, corporate strategy, and the Company’s compensation arrangements.
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Our Board believes that the leadership structure described above under “Board Leadership Structure” facilitates the Board’s oversight of risk management because it allows the Board, with leadership from the independent Chairman and working through its independent committees, to participate actively in the oversight of management’s actions.
Committees of the Board
The Board has three standing committees: the Audit Committee, the Compensation Committee and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. The written charters of these committees are available under “Governance” the “Governance Documents” on our website at
https://investors.surfair.com/
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Audit Committee
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Compensation Committee
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Nominating and Corporate
Governance Committee
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Carl Albert
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Stan Little
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Sudhin Shahani
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John D’Agostino
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Edward Mady
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Tyler Painter
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Tyrone Bland
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Bruce Hack
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Chairperson Financial Expert
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Financial Expert
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Chairperson
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Member
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Surf Air Mobility Inc.
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2024 Proxy Statement
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Audit Committee
Our Board determined that each of Carl Albert, John D’Agostino and Bruce Hack, who comprise our Audit Committee, satisfy the independence standards for such committee established by applicable SEC rules and the listing standards of the NYSE. Additionally, our Board has determined that each of John D’Agostino and Carl Albert is an “audit committee financial expert” as defined by applicable SEC rules.
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Committee Members
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Primary Responsibilities
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Carl Albert
John D’Agostino (Chair) Bruce Hack
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• Appointing, compensating, retaining and overseeing the work of our independent registered public accounting firm.
• Evaluating the performance, independence and qualifications of our independent registered public
accounting firm.
• Overseeing the quality and integrity of our financial statements and our compliance with applicable legal and regulatory requirements, including accounting, financial reporting, and public disclosure
requirements.
• Reviewing the performance of our system of internal control over financial reporting and the function
of the internal audit department.
• Preparing the audit committee report required by the SEC to be included in our annual proxy
statement.
• Discussing independent registered public accounting firm’s annual audit plan, including the timing and
scope of audit activities, and monitoring such plan’s progress and results.
• Reviewing with management and the independent registered public accounting firm our annual and
quarterly financial statements.
• Establishing procedures for employees to submit concerns anonymously about questionable
accounting or auditing matters.
• Reviewing our guidelines and policies on risk assessment and risk management.
• Reviewing and approving related party transactions.
• Obtaining and reviewing a report by our independent registered public accounting firm at least annually that describes our independent registered public accounting firm’s internal quality control procedures, any material issues raised by review under such procedures, and any steps taken to deal
with such issues.
• Approving (or, in its sole discretion, approving in advance) all audit and permitted non-audit engagements and relationships between us and our independent registered public accounting firm.
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The Audit Committee may form subcommittees and delegate to its subcommittees such power and authority as it deems appropriate to the extent consistent with the Company’s charter and bylaws, applicable law, rules and regulations and the rules of NYSE. The Audit Committee has no current intention to delegate any of its responsibilities to a subcommittee.
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Surf Air Mobility Inc.
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2024 Proxy Statement
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Compensation Committee
Our Board determined that each of Carl Albert and Edward Mady, who comprise our Compensation Committee, satisfy the independence standards for such committee established by applicable SEC rules and the listing standards of the NYSE. In making its independence determination for each member of the Compensation Committee, our Board considered whether the director has a relationship with the Company that is material to the director’s ability to be independent from management in connection with the duties of a Compensation Committee member.
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Committee Members
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Primary Responsibilities
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Carl Albert (Chair)
Edward Mady
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• Retaining compensation consultants and outside counsel, experts, and other advisors.
• Overseeing the Company’s overall compensation structure, policies, programs and arrangements.
• Reviewing and approving, or recommending that our Board approve, the compensation plans of
our executive officers.
• Perform such duties and responsibilities as may be assigned to the Committee under the terms of any compensation or other employee benefit plan, including any incentive- compensation or
equity-based plan.
• Reviewing and making recommendations to the Board for CEO succession plans and reviewing
with management the Company’s general management succession plans.
• At least annually reviewing and discussing the relationship between risk management policies and practices, corporate strategy, and the Company’s compensation arrangements.
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The Compensation Committee may form subcommittees and delegate to its subcommittees such power and authority to the extent consistent with the Company’s charter and bylaws, applicable law, rules and regulations and the rules of the NYSE. The Compensation Committee has not delegated any of its responsibilities to subcommittees. The Compensation Committee may confer with the Board in determining the compensation for the Chief Executive Officer. In determining compensation for executive officers other than the Chief Executive Officer, the Compensation Committee considers, among other things, the recommendations of the Chief Executive Officer.
Pursuant to its charter, the Compensation Committee is authorized to retain or obtain the advice of compensation consultants, outside counsel, experts or other advisors to assist in the evaluation of director and executive officer compensation or in carrying out its other responsibilities.
The Compensation Committee retained Compensia, Inc. (“Compensia”) as an independent compensation consultant, which did not provide any services to us in 2023 other than with respect to executive compensation. The Compensation Committee reviewed Compensia’s independence and completed an assessment of any potential conflicts of interest raised by Compensia’s work by considering the following six factors, as well as others it deemed relevant: (i) whether Compensia provides other services to us; (ii) the annual dollar value of fees paid to Compensia, as a percentage of Compensia’s total revenue; (iii) the policies and procedures of Compensia that are designed to prevent conflicts of interest; (iv) any business or personal relationships between Compensia consultants and members of the Compensation Committee; (v) whether any Compensia consultants own the Company’s stock and if so, how much; and (vi) any business or personal relationships between Compensia consultants or Compensia with any of our executive officers. As a result of this review, the Compensation Committee concluded that Compensia is independent and there are no such conflicts of interest.
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Surf Air Mobility Inc.
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10
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2024 Proxy Statement
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee
Our Board determined that each of Carl Albert, John D’Agostino and Tyrone Bland, who comprise our Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, satisfy the independence standards for such committee established by applicable SEC rules and the listing standards of the NYSE. In making its independence determination for each member of the Compensation Committee, our Board considered whether the director has a relationship with the Company that is material to the director’s ability to be independent from management in connection with the duties of a Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee member.
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Committee Members
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Primary Responsibilities
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Carl Albert (Chair)
John D’Agostino
Tyrone Bland
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• Identifying, evaluating and recommending individuals qualified to become members of our Board
and its committees.
• Overseeing the evaluation of the Board and its committees.
• Making recommendations to the Board with respect to the compensation of non-employee
members of the Board.
• Developing and recommending corporate governance guidelines to our Board.
• Advising the Board on corporate governance matters and Board performance matters.
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The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee may form subcommittees and delegate to its subcommittees such power and authority as it deems appropriate to the extent consistent with the Company’s charter and bylaws, applicable law, rules and regulations and the rules of NYSE. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee has no current intention to delegate any of its responsibilities to a subcommittee. In 2023, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee did not retain a third-party search firm to assist in the process of identifying and evaluating potential director candidates.
Meetings and Attendance
During fiscal 2023, our Board held five meetings, the Audit Committee held four meetings, the Compensation Committee held two meetings, and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee held one meeting. Each of our directors attended at least 75% of the aggregate meetings of the Board and the committees of the Board on which he or she served during fiscal 2023. In addition, independent directors of our Board meet in regularly scheduled sessions without management, which are chaired by our independent Chairman.
It is our policy that directors are invited and encouraged to attend each year’s annual meeting of stockholders, either in person, telephonically or virtually. The Company did not hold an annual meeting of stockholders in fiscal 2023 since none of our stock was publicly traded prior to July 2023, but, rather, directors were re-elected by written consent in accordance with Delaware law.
Succession Planning
Our Board recognizes that advance planning for contingencies such as the departure, death or disability of the Chief Executive Officer or other top executives is critical so that, in the event of an untimely vacancy, the Company has in place a succession plan to facilitate the transition to both interim and longer-term leadership. The Compensation Committee is developing the Company’s executive succession plan, including our emergency succession plan, with input from appropriate members of management.
Consideration of Director Candidates
Our Board and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee will consider director candidates recommended for election to the Board by stockholders in the same manner and using the same criteria as that used for any other director candidate. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee has not established any specific minimum qualifications that must be met by a director candidate. In evaluating a director candidate, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee will consider whether the composition of the Board reflects the appropriate balance of educational background, diversity of professional experience,
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Surf Air Mobility Inc.
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2024 Proxy Statement
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
knowledge of the Company’s business, integrity, professional reputation, independence, wisdom and ability to represent the best interests of the Company’s stockholders as determined by the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. Stockholders who wish to recommend a director candidate for consideration by the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and the Board should submit their recommendation in writing to the chairperson of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, care of the Corporate Secretary of the Company, no later than March 27, 2025. Such recommendation must include all information about the stockholder and the candidate otherwise required for director nominations by a stockholder pursuant to our Bylaws. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee may request additional information concerning such director candidate as it deems reasonably required to determine the eligibility and qualification of the director candidate to serve as a member of the Board.
Stockholders who wish to nominate a person for election as a director in connection with an annual meeting of stockholders (as opposed to making a recommendation to the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee as described above) must deliver written notice to our Corporate Secretary in the manner described in our Bylaws, and as described further under “Proposals of Stockholders and Director Nominations for 2024 Annual Meeting” below.
While our Board has no formal policy for the consideration of diversity in identifying director nominees, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee seeks to have a board of directors that will reflect a balance of experience, qualifications, diversity, attributes and skills desirable for the Board as a whole and assesses its effectiveness in this regard as part of its annual evaluation process.
Communications with the Board
The Board has established a process to receive communications from stockholders and other interested parties. Stockholders and other interested parties may communicate directly with members of the Board, the independent directors, or the Chairman of the Board by submitting a communication in an envelope marked “Confidential” addressed to the “Board of Directors,” “Independent Members of the Board of Directors,” or “Chairman,” as applicable, at: 12111 S. Crenshaw Boulevard, Hawthorne, California 90250.
Policy on Pledging and Hedging of Company Shares
As part of our Insider Trading Policy adopted by our Board and applicable to our directors, officers and employees, certain contractors, consultants or other persons designated as insiders, their immediate family members and other persons sharing the same household, any corporations, partnership or other entities that such person controls or manages and any trust for which such person is the trustee or has a beneficial pecuniary interest (collectively, “Insiders”), Insiders are not permitted to trade in Company securities while in possession of material nonpublic information about the Company, engage in short sales of Company securities, engage in transactions in put options, call options or other derivative securities, on an exchange or in any other organized market in connection with Company securities, pledge Company securities as collateral for a loan or margin Company securities in a margin account or purchase financial instruments (including prepaid variable forward contracts, equity swaps, collars and exchange funds), or otherwise engage in transactions that hedge or offset, or are designed to hedge or offset, any decrease in the market value of Company securities.
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Surf Air Mobility Inc.
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2024 Proxy Statement
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Code of Ethics and Code of Business Conduct and Ethics
We have adopted a written code of conduct and ethics that applies to each of our employees, officers and directors. A current copy of the code is posted under “Governance” on our website at
https://investors.surfair.com/
. To the extent required by rules adopted by the SEC and the NYSE, we intend to promptly disclose future amendments to certain provisions of the code, or waivers of such provisions granted to executive officers and directors, on our website at
https://investors.surfair.com/.
Stock Ownership Guidelines
Our Compensation Committee and Board of Directors adopted stock ownership guidelines to better align our non-employee directors’ and executive officers’ interests with those of our stockholders. Our executive officers consist of our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer. Details of our directors’ stock ownership guidelines are disclosed under “Director Stock Ownership Guidelines” on page
15
, and details of our executive officers’ stock ownership guidelines are disclosed under “Executive Compensation — Stock Ownership Guidelines” on page
21
. The Compensation Committee administers the stock ownership guidelines and monitors compliance with such guidelines on an annual basis.
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Surf Air Mobility Inc.
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2024 Proxy Statement
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Non-Employee Director Compensation
We adopted a policy for compensating our non-employee directors with a combination of cash and equity, with such equity awards being subject to the terms and conditions of our 2023 Equity Incentive Plan (the “2023 Plan”).
Annual Cash Retainers
All non-employee directors are entitled to receive a $50,000 ($60,000 for our Lead Independent Director) annual cash retainer for serving as a member of the Board as well as the following additional annual cash retainers for their Board committee service:
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Chair
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Member
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Audit Committee
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$25,000
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$12,500
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Compensation Committee
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20,000
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10,000
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Nominating Committee
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15,000
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7,500
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Each annual cash retainer is paid quarterly in arrears after the end of each fiscal quarter. We reimburse all of our directors for their reasonable out-of-pocket expenses, including travel, food, and lodging, incurred in attending meetings of our Board and/or its committees.
Equity Compensation
New non-employee directors are entitled to receive an initial equity grant with a target grant date fair value of $330,000 awarded in the form of restricted stock units. On July 25, 2023, each non-employee director was awarded 13,409 restricted stock units, (the “July 2023 RSUs”), based on an assumed opening price of our common stock as of the date of our direct listing of $24.61 per common share. The actual opening price of our common stock as of July 27, 2023, the date of our direct listing, was $5.00 per common share, and the closing price of our common stock as of such date was $3.15 per common share. On April 3, 2024 each non-employee director was awarded an additional 91,353 restricted stock units, (the “April 2024 RSUs”), which, together with the original grant of 13,409 restricted stock units previously granted to each non-employee director, represented $330,000 based on the $3.15 per share closing price on July 27, 2023, the date of our direct listing. The April 2024 RSUs will appear as awards in next year’s Director Compensation Table in accordance with SEC rules. Subject to the director’s continued service, initial equity awards vest on the one-year anniversary of the date of grant, provided that, because the April 2024 RSUs were intended to constitute part of the initial grant along with the July 2023 RSUs, the April 2024 RSUs will vest in July 2024 along with the July 2023 RSUs. In addition, beginning in 2024 and in each subsequent year on or around our annual meeting of the stockholders, each non-employee director will be entitled to receive an annual equity grant with a target grant date fair value of $165,000 awarded in the form of restricted stock units. The annual equity awards will vest in full on the one-year anniversary of the date of grant subject to the director’s continued service through such date.
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2024 Proxy Statement
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Director Stock Ownership Guidelines
The Compensation Committee and our Board of Directors adopted the following stock ownership guidelines for our non-employee directors to better align our the interests of our non-employee directors with those of our stockholders:
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Directors must maintain a minimum holding of company stock with a fair market value equal to five times (5x) such director’s annual cash retainer (excluding annual retainers for service on committees of the Board); and
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Directors will have five years to reach the minimum holding level.
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The stock ownership information for each of our directors is shown under the heading “Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management” on page
22
of this proxy statement. As of April 9, 2024, all of our non-employee directors had either met their stock ownership requirement or had remaining time to do so.
Director Compensation Table - Fiscal 2023
The following table sets forth the total compensation paid to our non-employee directors for their service on our Board during fiscal 2023. Stan Little and Sudhin Shahani, who are employed by us, do not receive any compensation for their service on the Board.
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Name
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Fees Earned
or Paid in
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Stock
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All Other
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Carl Albert
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$39,275
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$117,983
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$ —
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$157,258
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Tyrone Bland
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14,375
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117,983
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—
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132,358
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John D’Agostino
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50,625
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117,983
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1,460
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170,068
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Bruce Hack
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15,625
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117,983
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—
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133,608
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Ed Mady
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90,839
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117,983
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4,380
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213,202
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Ann Nelson
(3)
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50,000
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—
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—
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50,000
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Tyler Painter
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12,500
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117,983
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9,238
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139,721
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(1)
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Amounts shown in this column represent the aggregate grant date fair value (calculated in accordance with Financial Accounting Standards Board Accounting Standards Codification Topic 718 “Compensation – Stock Compensation”) of stock awards granted during the year, based on a value per share of $8.80, which was utilized for the recording of compensation expense under generally accepted accounting principles. A description of the methodologies and assumptions we use to value equity awards and the manner in which we recognize the related expense are described in Note 18 to our consolidated financial statements, for the year ended December 31, 2023 as found in the Company’s Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023. These amounts may not correspond to the actual value eventually realized by each director because the value depends on the market value of our common stock at the time the award vests. As of December 31, 2023, each director held 13,409 restricted stock units, except for Ms. Nelson, who did not hold any outstanding equity awards as of such date.
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(2)
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On May 26, 2023, the Company approved the forgiveness of certain promissory notes associated with the issuance of restricted stock purchase agreements (“RSPAs”) to executives and directors. The Company also provided bonuses to pay for interest and tax associated with the issuance of these shares in the aggregate amount of $0.1 million to all such executives and directors.
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(3)
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Ms. Nelson resigned effective May 16, 2023.
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Indemnification Agreements
We have entered into indemnification agreements with our officers and directors. These agreements, among other things, require the Company to indemnify its officers and directors for certain expenses, including attorneys’ fees, judgments, fines, and settlement amounts incurred by an officer or director in any action or proceeding arising out of their services as one of the Company’s officers or directors or any other company or enterprise to which the person provides services at the Company’s request.
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Surf Air Mobility Inc.
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Executive Officers of the Company
The table below sets forth certain information regarding our executive officers as of April 9, 2024, each of which holds office until such officer’s successor has been appointed by the Board, or until such officer’s earlier death, resignation or removal:
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Name
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Age
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Position
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Stan Little
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52
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Chief Executive Officer Director
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Deanna White
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58
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Chief Financial Officer (*resigned 12/31/2023)
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Oliver Reeves
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45
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Chief Financial Officer (started 1/1/2024)
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See “Proposal One — Election of Directors” for information concerning the business experience of Stan Little. Information concerning the business experience of our other executive officers is set forth below.
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Deanna White
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Ms. White served as Chief Financial Officer of the Company from July 2023 to December 2023. Ms. White served as the Chief Financial Officer of Surf Air Global Limited, a subsidiary of the Company, from May 2022 to July 2023, and prior to that, she served as Chief Administrative Officer of Surf Air Global Limited from January 2021 to May 2022. Ms. White served as COO at Kitty Hawk/Cora, an aerospace company, from December 2017 to October 2019, where she led the business operations and commercialization of an RD eVTOL aircraft program. Ms. White also served as CFO and CEO of Bombardier Flexjet from October 2005 to March 2015. Ms. White holds a BS in accounting from the University of Tampa, and an MBA and MA in Cybersecurity from the University of Dallas.
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Oliver Reeves
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Oliver Reeves has served as Chief Financial Officer of the Company since January 2024. Oliver brings with him his deep experience with capital markets strategy. Oliver most recently served as Chief Strategy Officer of Xinuos, Inc., the developer and licensor of the UnixWare and OpenServer operating systems, from May 2019 to December 2023. Earlier in his career, Mr. Reeves gained investment experience by holding several asset management positions: first as an Investment Analyst at Coliseum Capital Management, then as a Vice President at Gerson Global Advisors, and finally as a Senior Vice President at Phoenix Star Capital. Mr. Reeves received his MBA from Columbia Business School and graduated Summa Cum Laude from Babson College.
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There are no family relationships between or among any of our executive officers or directors.
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Surf Air Mobility Inc.
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2024 Proxy Statement
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Our named executive officers, or NEOs, for 2023, are
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Stan Little, our Chief Executive Officer, or CEO, and member of our Board;
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•
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Deanna White, our former Chief Financial Officer.
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Sudhin Shahani, our former Chief Executive Officer and member of our Board.
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Summary Compensation Table - Fiscal Years 2022-2023
The following table summarizes the compensation awarded to, earned by, or paid to our NEOs for 2023 and 2022.
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Name and Principal Position
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Year
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Stock
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All Other
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Stan Little
Chief Executive Officer
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2023
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852,493
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—
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2,548,942
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—
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446,243
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3,847,678
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2022
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295,000
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60,000
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—
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2,699,900
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48,000
(7)
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3,102,900
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Deanna White
(4)
Former Chief Financial Officer
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2023
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579,723
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545,834
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—
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—
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39,223
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1,164,780
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2022
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375,000
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200,000
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—
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3,066,729
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75,000
(8)
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3,716,729
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Sudhin Shahani
(5)
Former Chief Executive Officer
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2023
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490,268
(6)
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329,861
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2,847,600
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—
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108,452
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3,776,181
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2022
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350,000
(6)
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150,000
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1,753,945
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—
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—
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2,253,945
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(1)
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The amounts reported in this column represent discretionary bonuses awarded to the executive for the applicable fiscal year. Values for 2023 represent catch-up bonuses provided to Ms. White and Mr. Shahani pursuant to their respective employment agreements. Ms. White received a bonus equal to the sum of $179,167 plus the amount by which the base salary she would have received for the period from October 1, 2022 through the Company’s listing date at an annual rate of $650,000 exceeded the amount of base salary she received for her services during that period. Mr. Shahani received a bonus equal to the amount by which the base salary he would have received for the period from June 1, 2021 through the day before the Company’s listing date at an annual rate of $975,000 exceeds the amount of base salary and consulting fees (as applicable) he received for his services during that period.
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(2)
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Amounts shown in these columns represent the aggregate grant date fair value (calculated in accordance with Financial Accounting Standards Board Accounting Standards Codification Topic 718) of stock awards and stock options granted during the year. A description of the methodologies and assumptions we use to value equity awards and the manner in which we recognize the related expense are described in Note 18 to our consolidated financial statements, Stock-Based Compensation. These amounts may not correspond to the actual value eventually realized by each NEO because the value depends on the market value of our common stock at the time the award vests or is exercised.
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(3)
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Values for 2023 represent the value of a loan forgiveness bonus paid to each executive and a corresponding tax gross-up on such bonus payment and, for Mr. Shahani, the value of a car allowance.
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(4)
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Ms. White voluntarily resigned as our Chief Financial Officer effective December 31, 2023, but continues to serve as a non-executive employee.
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(5)
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Mr. Shahani previously served as Chief Executive Officer and, effective as of July 27, 2023, began serving as a non-executive employee director.
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(6)
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Mr. Shahani was paid as a consultant in 2022 and a non-executive employee in 2023.
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(7)
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This amount represents a housing allowance for Mr. Little.
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(8)
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This amount represents payments to Ms. White in 2022 for consulting services.
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Outstanding Equity Awards as of December 31, 2023
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Option Awards
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Stock Awards
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Name
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Number of
Securities
Underlying
Unexercised
Options
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Number of
Securities
Underlying
Unexercised
Options
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Equity
Incentive
Plan
Awards:
Number of
Securities
Underlying
Unexercised
Unearned
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Option
Exercise
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Option
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Number of
Shares or
Units of
Stock That
Have Not
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Market
Value of
Shares or
Units of
Stock
That
Have Not
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Equity
Incentive
Plan
Awards:
Number of
Unearned
Shares,
Units or
Other
Rights
That Have
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Equity
Incentive
Plan
Awards:
Market or
Payout Value
of Unearned
Shares,
Units or
Other
Rights
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Stan Little
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—
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—
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—
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—
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—
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—
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—
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280,000
(2)
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434,000
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—
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—
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—
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—
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—
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—
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—
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54,670
(3)
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84,739
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—
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—
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—
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—
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—
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—
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—
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418,058
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647,990
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Deanna White
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293,475
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—
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—
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0.53
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3/1/2032
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—
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—
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—
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—
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187,500
(4)
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105,976
(4)
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—
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5.73
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11/12/2032
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—
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—
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—
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—
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Sudhin Shahani
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|
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—
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—
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—
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—
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—
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—
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|
|
—
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1,260,000
(2)
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1,953,000
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(1)
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The dollar amounts shown in these columns are determined by multiplying the corresponding number of shares by $1.55, the closing price of the shares as of December 29, 2023, the last trading day in fiscal 2023.
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(2)
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These performance-based restricted stock units will only vest if the per-share closing price of our common stock over a period of ten consecutive trading days within the five-year performance period is greater than 200% of $5.00, subject to continued employment through the date such stock price goal is achieved.
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(3)
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These shares vest subject to the achievement of certain revenue goals, subject to continued employment through the date of achievement.
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(4)
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These stock options vest monthly over a three-year period measured from January 1, 2022.
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In connection with the listing, the Compensation Committee approved the grant under the 2023 Equity Incentive Plan of performance-based restricted stock units (“PRSUs”) of 280,000 PRSUs to Mr. Little and 1,260,000 PRSUs to Mr. Shahani. Each PRSU represents a right to receive, upon vesting of the PRSU, one share of our common stock. These PRSUs will vest only if (i) the per-share closing price of our common stock over a period of 10 consecutive trading days within five years after July 27, 2023 is greater than 200% of $5.00, and (ii) the grantee’s employment with the Company or one of its subsidiaries continues through the date such stock price goal is achieved, provided that if the grantee’s employment is terminated by the Company or a subsidiary without cause or by the grantee for good reason (as such terms are defined in the grantee’s employment agreement), the award will remain open and be eligible to vest if the stock price goal is achieved before the end of the five-year performance period. In addition, if a change in control occurs during the performance period and while the grantee is still employed with the Company or a subsidiary (or has incurred an involuntary termination of the grantee’s employment as described above), the award will vest in full upon the change in control.
Executives are eligible to receive discretionary bonuses for performance during the year. In 2023, Ms. White and Mr. Shahani also received catch-up bonuses provided pursuant to their respective employment agreements, as described in more detail below and in footnote (1) to the Summary Compensation Table.
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Executive Employment and Severance Agreements
On May 16, 2022, we entered into an employment agreement with Mr. Little, which was amended on October 23, 2022 to provide that Mr. Little will serve as our Chief Executive Officer effective as of the consummation of our direct listing (the “Effective Date”) and has an initial five-year term. The term will automatically be extended by one additional year starting on the fifth anniversary of the Effective Date unless either party provides at least 60 days written notice that the term will not be extended. The agreement provides that Mr. Little will receive an initial annual base salary of $975,000 and is eligible for an annual discretionary bonus as determined by the Compensation Committee (with a target incentive equal to 200% of his base salary). He is also eligible to participate in the Company’s benefit plans made available to employees generally and is provided a hybrid, electrified, or all electric automobile and use of Company aircraft, each in accordance with Company policies applicable to senior executives. Pursuant to the agreement, Mr. Little was granted the right to purchase 647,317 of our restricted shares on May 13, 2022 that vest over a three-year period. If Mr. Little’s employment with the Company is terminated by the Company without “cause” or by him for “good reason” (as defined in the agreement), he will receive severance of nine months of his base salary, plus one additional month for each year of his service with the Company up to a maximum of 12 months (payable in installments over such period), payment of his COBRA premiums for up to 18 months, and 36 months’ accelerated vesting of any time-based vesting component of his then-outstanding and unvested equity awards granted by the Company (or 18 months of such accelerated vesting in the case of performance-based awards; provided, however, that the PRSUs described above under the heading “2023 Equity Grants” will vest as described above). In addition, he will receive a lump sum payment of a pro-rated amount of his target bonus for the fiscal year in which his termination occurs and an additional amount equal to 1.5 times his target bonus. However, if such a termination of his employment occurs on or within two years following a change in control of the Company, the salary component of his severance will be paid in a lump sum, the bonus component of his severance (in addition to the pro-rated target bonus for the year of termination) will equal two times his target bonus, and, and his then-outstanding equity awards granted by the Company will be fully vested (with performance-based awards vesting at the target level; provided, however, that the PRSUs described above under the heading “2023 Equity Grants” will vest as described above). Mr. Little’s right to receive these severance benefits is subject to his providing a release of claims to the Company and his continued compliance with his confidentiality, non-solicitation (which shall continue for 12 months following termination), and other covenants in favor of the Company. If his employment with the Company terminates due to his death or disability, the Company will pay him (or his estate) a pro-rated target bonus for the year in which such termination occurs. If any payments under Mr. Little’s employment agreement would otherwise trigger the excise tax imposed by Section 4999 of the Internal Revenue Code, the payments will be reduced as provided in the agreement to a level that does not trigger the excise tax if the reduction results in his retaining a greater amount of the payments on an after-tax basis than if such reduction were not made.
On December 19, 2022, we entered into an employment agreement with Ms. White to serve as our Chief Financial Officer. The agreement became effective on the Effective Date and had an initial three-year term. Ms. White voluntarily resigned as our Chief Financial Officer effective as of December 31, 2023. The agreement provided that Ms. White would receive an initial annual base salary of $650,000 and was eligible for an annual discretionary bonus as determined by the Compensation Committee (with a target incentive equal to 200% of her base salary). The agreement also provided for her to receive an additional bonus equal to the sum of $179,167 plus the amount by which the base salary she would have received for the period from October 1, 2022 through the Effective Date at an annual rate of $650,000 exceeded the amount of base salary she received for her services during that period. She was also eligible to participate in the Company’s benefit plans made available to employees generally and was provided a hybrid, electrified, or all electric automobile and use of Company aircraft, each in accordance with Company policies applicable to senior executives. Ms. White was not eligible for any severance benefits in connection with her transition to an advisory role to the Board of Directors from January 1, 2024 to May 31, 2024.
On August 20, 2021, we entered into an employment agreement with Mr. Shahani, who was then serving as our Chief Executive Officer and following the Effective Date, serves in the position of Co-Founder and a member of the Board. The agreement, which was amended on January 20, 2023, became effective on the Effective Date and has an initial five-year term. The term will automatically be extended by one additional year on each anniversary of the Effective Date (so that the term will again be five years on that anniversary date) unless either party provides at least 60 days written notice that the term will not be extended. The agreement provides that Mr. Shahani will receive an initial annual base salary of $975,000 (plus an additional bonus equal to the amount by which the base salary he would have
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received for the period from June 1, 2021 through the day before the Effective Date at an annual rate of $975,000 exceeds the amount of base salary and consulting fees (as applicable) he received for his services during that period). Mr. Shahani is also eligible for an annual discretionary bonus as determined by the Compensation Committee (with a target incentive equal to 200% of his base salary) and to participate in the Company’s benefit plans made available to employees generally. Mr. Shahani is also provided a hybrid, electrified, or all electric automobile and use of Company aircraft, each in accordance with Company policies applicable to senior executives. Pursuant to the agreement, Mr. Shahani was granted an award of 1,125,817 vested shares on January 7, 2022. If Mr. Shahani’s employment with the Company is terminated by the Company without “cause” or by him for “good reason” (as defined in the agreement), he will receive severance of his salary for the remainder of the term of the agreement then in effect (payable in installments over such period), payment of his COBRA premiums for up to 18 months, and 18 months’ accelerated vesting of any time-based vesting component of his then-outstanding and unvested equity awards granted by the Company. In addition, he will receive a lump sum payment of a pro-rated amount of his target bonus for the fiscal year in which his termination occurs and an additional amount equal to 1.5 times his target bonus. However, if such a termination of his employment occurs on or within two years following a change in control of the Company, the salary component of his severance will be paid in a lump sum, the bonus component of his severance (in addition to the pro-rated target bonus for the year of termination) will equal two times his target bonus, and his then-outstanding equity awards granted by the Company will be fully vested (with performance-based awards vesting at the target level; provided, however, that the PRSUs described above under the heading “2023 Equity Grants” will vest as described above). Mr. Shahani’s right to receive these severance benefits is subject to his providing a release of claims to the Company and his continued compliance with his confidentiality, non-solicitation (which shall continue for 12 months following termination), and other covenants in favor of the Company. If his employment with the Company terminates due to his death or disability, the Company will pay him (or his estate) a pro-rated target bonus for the year in which such termination occurs. If any payments under Mr. Shahani’s employment agreement would otherwise trigger the excise tax imposed by Section 4999 of the Internal Revenue Code, the payments will be reduced as provided in the agreement to a level that does not trigger the excise tax if the reduction results in his retaining a greater amount of the payments on an after-tax basis than if such reduction were not made.
Defined Contribution Plans
As part of our overall compensation program, we provide all full-time employees, including each of the NEOs currently employed with us, with the opportunity to participate in a defined contribution 401(k) plan. The plan is intended to qualify under Section 401 of the Internal Revenue Code so that employee contributions and income earned on such contributions are not taxable to employees until withdrawn. Employees may elect to defer a percentage of their eligible compensation (not to exceed the statutorily prescribed annual limit) in the form of elective deferral contributions to the plan. The 401(k) plan also has a “catch-up contribution” feature for employees aged 50 or older (including those who qualify as “highly compensated” employees) who can defer amounts over the statutory limit that applies to all other employees. The Company does not currently make any matching or other contributions to participants’ accounts under the 401(k) plan. Prior to the Company’s acquisition of Southern, Mr. Little participated in Southern’s 401(k) plan, which had provisions similar to those described above.
We do not maintain any defined benefit pension plans or any nonqualified deferred compensation plans.
Our Board of Directors and stockholders adopted an Employee Stock Purchase Plan (the “
ESPP
”) prior to the consummation of this listing to provide an additional means to attract, motivate, retain and reward employees and other eligible persons by allowing them to purchase our shares at a discount with their accumulated payroll deductions. The ESPP became effective immediately upon listing.
Incentive Compensation Clawback Policy
We have adopted a Compensation Recoupment (Clawback) Policy, which is intended to comply with the requirements of Section 303A.14 of the New York Stock Exchange Listed Company Manual implementing Rule 10D-1 under the Exchange Act. In the event the Company is required to prepare an accounting restatement of the Company’s financial statements due to material non-compliance with any financial reporting requirement under the federal securities laws, the Company will recover, on a reasonably prompt basis, the excess incentive-based compensation received by any covered executive during the prior three fiscal years that exceeds the amount that the executive otherwise would have received had the incentive-based compensation been determined based on the restated financial statements.
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Stock Ownership Guidelines
The Compensation Committee and our Board of Directors adopted the following stock ownership guidelines for our executive officers to better align the interests of our executive officers with those of our stockholders:
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Our chief executive officer must maintain a minimum holding of company stock with a fair market value equal to five times (5x) their annual base salary;
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Our chief financial officer must maintain a minimum holding of company stock with a fair market value equal to three times (3x) their annual base salary;
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Our other Section 16 officers must maintain a minimum holding of company stock with a fair market value equal to two times (2x) their annual base salary; and
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Our executive officers will have five years to reach the minimum holding level.
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The stock ownership information for each of our executive officers is shown under the heading “Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management” on page
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of this proxy statement. As of April 9, 2024, all of our executive officers had either met their stock ownership requirement or had remaining time to do so.
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Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management
The following table sets forth certain information with respect to the beneficial ownership of our common stock as of April 9, 2024 for:
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each of our named executive officers;
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all of our current directors and executive officers as a group; and
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each person known by us to be the beneficial owner of more than 5% of the outstanding shares of our common stock.
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We have determined beneficial ownership in accordance with the rules of the SEC, and thus it represents sole or shared voting or investment power with respect to our securities. Unless otherwise indicated below, to our knowledge, the persons and entities named in the table have sole voting and sole investment power with respect to all shares that they beneficially owned, subject to community property laws where applicable. The information does not necessarily indicate beneficial ownership for any other purpose, including for purposes of Sections 13(d) and 13(g) of the Securities Act.
We have based our calculation of the percentage of beneficial ownership on 82,953,927 shares of our common stock outstanding as of April 9, 2024. In accordance with SEC rules, we have deemed shares of our common stock subject to stock options or warrants that are currently exercisable or exercisable within sixty (60) days of April 9, 2024, and shares of our common stock underlying RSUs that are currently releasable or releasable within sixty (60) days of April 9, 2024, to be outstanding and to be beneficially owned by the person holding the common stock, options, warrants or RSUs for the purpose of computing the percentage ownership of that person. We did not deem these shares outstanding, however, for the purpose of computing the percentage ownership of any other person.
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Unless otherwise indicated, the address of each beneficial owner listed in the table below is c/o Surf Air Mobility Inc., 12111 S. Crenshaw Boulevard, Hawthorne, California 90250. The information provided in the table is based on our records, information filed with the SEC and information provided to us, except where otherwise noted.
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NAME
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Number of Shares of Common Stock
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Percent of Outstanding Common Stock
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5% Stockholders
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GEM Global Yield LLC SCS
1
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6,300,000
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7.6%
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Liam Fayed
2
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5,751,258
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6.9%
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Palantir Technologies Inc.
3
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5,205,492
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6.3%
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Kuzari Investor 94647 LLC
4
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5,547,233
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6.7%
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Directors and Executive Officers
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Sudhin Shahani
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3,645,499
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4.4%
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Stan Little
5
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2,018,841
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2.4%
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Deanna White
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529,888
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*
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Oliver Reeves
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129,078
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Carl Albert
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332,004
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Tyrone Bland
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—
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*
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John D’Agostino
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42,115
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*
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Bruce Hack
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—
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Edward Mady
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82,375
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Tyler Painter
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463,276
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All directors and executive officers as a group (9 persons)
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6,721,840
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8.1%
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Consists of (i) 1,000,000 shares issued to GEM in connection with the GEM Purchase, (ii) 1,300,000 shares issued to GEM in connection with the Initial GEM Issuance, (iii) 4,000,000 shares issued to GEM in satisfaction of the GEM Commitment Fee, and (iv) up to an additional 300,000,000 shares that may be issued to GEM in connection with SAM’s exercise of its rights under the Share Subscription Facility (not including the 18,700,000 shares that may be issued to GEM, the resale of which was previously registered). GEM Global Yield Fund LLC is the general partner of GEM Global Yield LLC SCS. As previously disclosed in a Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on March 6, 2024, each of these shares will be retired in connection with the issuance to GEM of a mandatory convertible security, which is currently expected to occur by the end of the second quarter of 2024. Christopher F. Brown is the sole beneficial owner of GEM GP and has voting and dispositive power over the shares held by GEM. Mr. Brown disclaims beneficial ownership of the shares held by GEM other than to the extent of his ultimate pecuniary interest therein. The address for GEM is 12C, rue Guillaume J. Kroll, L-1882 Luxembourg.
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Based on information provided in a Schedule 13G filed with the SEC on February 14, 2024, as of December 31, 2023, the number of shares consists of (i) 1,405,165 shares of the Company’s Common Stock held by Liam Fayed and (ii) 4,346,093 shares of the Company’s Common Stock held by LamVen LLC, which is an entity affiliated with Mr. Fayed, as of December 31, 2023. Mr. Fayed has sole voting power with respect to 1,405,165 of the reported shares, shared voting power with respect to 4,346,093 of the reported shares, shared investment power with respect to 1,405,165 of the reported shares, and shared investment power with respect to 4,346,093 of the reported shares. Mr. Fayed’s address is 53 Greenwich Avenue, Second Floor, Greenwich, CT 06830.
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Based on information provided in a Schedule 13G filed with the SEC on February 15, 2024, Palantir Technologies held 5,205,492 shares of Common Stock as of February 15, 2024, including 1,851,852 shares of Common Stock received on February 15, 2024 as payment for certain outstanding receivables. Palantir Technologies’ address is 1200 17th Street, Floor 15 Denver, Colorado 80202.
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Kuzari Investor 94647 LLC owns 3,692,740 shares and Kuzari Manager 94647 LLC owns 1,854,493 shares. Kuzari Investor 94647 LLC controls the shares owned by the two entities and lists their address as 220 East 42nd Street, New York, NY 10017.
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Consists of (i) 441,082 shares held by Stan Little, and (ii) 1,351,513 shares of restricted stock held by The Little 2021 Family Trust dated November 15, 2021 (“The Little 2021 Family Trust”), of which Mr. Little is Trustee, and (iii) 226,246 shares held by the MML 2021 Irrevocable Trust, of which Mr. Little’s spouse is Trustee. Mr. Little may be deemed to have voting or dispositive power over the shares held by The Little 2021 Family Trust. The reporting person disclaims any pecuniary interest in the shares held by the MML 2021 Irrevocable Trust.
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Consists of 39,324 shares held by Mr. Reeves and 89,754 shares held in a joint account by Mr. Reeves and his spouse.
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Consists of 332,004 shares held by The Carl Albert Trust dated June 7, 1991 (“The Carl Albert Trust”), of which Carl Albert is Trustee. Mr. Albert may be deemed to have voting or dispositive power over the shares held by The Carl Albert Trust.
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Equity Incentive Plan Information
The following table sets forth information regarding shares of our common stock that may be issued under our existing equity compensation plans as of December 31, 2023:
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Plan category
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Number of Securities
to Be Issued Upon
Exercise of
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