- Latest edition April 16th: Sumisho ALC gets off the ground
- April 2nd: Jet fuel prices and airline hedging strategies
- March 19th: Air travel to more than double by 2050
- March 5th: DAE to acquire Macquarie AirFinance
- February 19th: Lessors report record 2025 performance
- February 5th: Deliveries to reach $120 billion in 2026
Leasing Business DAE teams up with Blackstone in latest dealDAE has been at the centre of recent consolidation in the aircraft leasing sector with the Dubai-headquartered lessor acquiring Nordic Aviation Capital in 2025 and recently announcing an agreement to buy Macquarie AirFinance that will see the lessor’s portfolio swell beyond 1,000 aircraft. Now the top three lessor is teaming up with the credit division of alternative asset management giant Blackstone that is planning to invest billions in on-lease aircraft, in the latest example of a global investment firm deploying capital at scale in the aircraft leasing sector. Aviation ABS Castlelake to test market appetite with mid-life ABSSimilar to 2025, the aviation ABS market started strongly in 2026 and, also similar to 2025, has had its early year issuance momentum stalled as issuers and investors digest geopolitical upheavals and trading environment uncertainties. Although the US administration’s early 2025 tariff threats (and eventual moves) were less a direct threat to the global aviation market than the current Middle East conflict which has not only seen a spiking of the oil price but, more importantly for airlines, has seen the price of jet fuel double and has resulted in warnings, especially across Europe, of a potential shortage of jet fuel if the Gulf remains closed. Despite these uncertainties Castlelake feels confident enough to bring its second aircraft-backed ABS of 2026 to market. Leasing Business Lessor activity strong in Q1 despite oil shock for airlines
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In this issue In this issueAs the airline industry scrambles for solutions to the spike in oil prices caused by the conflict in the Middle East, the aircraft leasing sector, as evidenced across the stories in this issue remains insulated, for now, from a crisis that has doubled the price of jet fuel and threatens its supply. These stories include the closing of the Air Lease deal (including the highly successful issuance of merger bonds despite Gulf conflict), Blackstone tying up with DAE to pump billions into leased aircraft, Novus launching its third junior debt fund and Castlelake deciding to test investor appetite for its mid-life aircraft ABS issuance. Leasing Business Air Lease deal closes
Aircraft Financing Novus launches third junior debt fundNovus Aviation Capital has launched Tamweel Aviation Finance III, its third junior debt fund dedicated to the funding of Airbus aircraft, with increasing Airbus deliveries expected to boost demand for its offering. The closed end fund is co-sponsored by Airbus, Development Bank of Japan and Novus and building on the long term cooperation between the three entities which stretches back to the initial launch of Tamweel Aviation Finance in 2013. |
The latest trading updates from some of the world’s leading lessors show that any negative impact the ongoing conflict in Iran and the Middle East and the disruption of global oil markets will have on the aircraft leasing sector is not yet evident. AerCap, Avolon and BOC Aviation all reported impressive opening quarters to 2025 while a bond issuance related to the Sumisho ALC deal and DAE’s deal with Blackstone show investor appetite remains strong despite the uncertainties.
The $7.4 billion deal to create Sumisho Air Lease Corporation closed on April 8th and with its conclusion made its servicer, SMBC Aviation Capital, the world's second largest aircraft lessor with an owned, serviced and committed aircraft portfolio of over 1,700 aircraft. The investor group behind the deal Sumitomo Corporation, SMBC Aviation Capital, Apollo and Brookfield, had previously announced a heavy-weight executive management team for Sumisho ALC, while it has also recently successfully issued bonds related to the merger despite the conflict in the Middle East putting the brakes on much aviation capital markets activity.