ABL Aviation, the global independent aircraft investment management firm, has closed another Japanese operating lease with call option (JOLCO) arranging the equity portion of two(2) Airbus A350-900s aircraft for Lufthansa. This is the first transaction that ABL Aviation has completed with Lufthansa and was closed in a short timeframe. The financing was secured in April for both A350 aircraft – under three weeks from the date of being mandated and represents the tenth transaction arranged by ABL Aviation since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The deal reflects that Lufthansa’s interest in the JOLCO market is mutual, given the strong preference for first-tier credits by Japanese equity investors. Ali Ben Lmadani, CEO of ABL Aviation commented: “We are delighted to work on this transaction with Lufthansa, one of the world’s leading airlines, offering competitive financing in record time. The deal reflects both ABL Aviation’s innovative approach to finance and resilience with high levels of activity and successful transactions at the beginning of this year, despite ongoing economic uncertainty. It is encouraging to see new capital being deployed in the new aircraft space. We hope it is the first of many deals we deliver with Lufthansa.”