Serious Aviation Capital, the jet-leasing platform co-founded by Ryanair’s former chief financial officer Howard Miller and other aviation giants, has acquired seven jets in two separate deals, which industry sources say will be worth $200m (€200m). 186m) as much as possible.
That transaction brings Sirius Aviation Capital’s total fleet of managed aircraft to 17, which is valued at approximately $500m (€465m).
Sirius specializes in mid-life single-aisle jets, with demand for aircraft robustness as air travel continues its post-Covid recovery.
Mr Miller, who is still a non-executive director at Ryanair, is Sirius’ chief executive.
Sirius has no exposure to Russia, focusing instead on leasing jets in markets elsewhere in Europe, as well as the United States and the Asia-Pacific.
In one of the deals it has just completed, Sirius has acquired five aircraft from Dublin-based aircraft leasing giant SMBC Aviation Capital.
They are a mix of the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 and are currently leased to carriers including Iberia, All Nippon Airways’ subsidiary Peach, Volaris and SunExpress – a joint venture between Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines.
The acquisition from SMBC comes through a joint venture between Sirius and Carolus Aviation Leasing, the portfolio company of US-based investment firm Quorum Capital Management.
Sirius and Carolus have previously teamed up on other aircraft acquisitions.
Sirius’ stake in the joint venture was funded through the commitment of its anchor investor, Abu Dhabi Catalyst Partners (ADCP).
ADCP is a joint venture between Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth investor Mubadala Investment Company and American investment firm Alpha Wave Ventures.
Ed Coughlan, Sirius’ Chief Commercial Officer and Deputy CEO, welcomed the deal.
“We are leasing these aircraft on top-tier airline credit to enhance our relationship with Quorum Capital, taking advantage of the attractive returns available in mid-life single isle aircraft leasing. ” “This brings the total aircraft acquired with Quorum Capital to 10. We look forward to further expanding our relationship with Quorum in the years to come by leveraging our mutual industry ties.”
SMBC Chief Commercial Officer Barry Flannery said the group looks forward to developing its business relationship with Sirius as it continues to build out its fleet.
Separately, Sirius obtained two other aircraft from an unidentified Japanese lessor. Those two jets are an Airbus A321 leased to All Nippon Airways and an A320 leased to Wizz Air.
In previous aircraft acquisitions, Sirius has bought jets that have been leased to airlines including Southwest, Air New Zealand, Spirit and Etihad.
Two weeks ago, SMBC Aviation Capital, whose chief executive is Peter Barrett, sealed a deal to buy Dublin-based rival Goshawk in a $7bn (€6.5bn) deal. This would make it the world’s second largest aircraft leasing company with assets of $37bn (€34.5bn).
Global air travel has improved sharply so far this year, although China’s continued efforts to suppress the Covid outbreak have hindered a resurgence there.
