Finnair raises $400mn through A350 sales/lease-backs

Finnair (AY, Helsinki Vantaa) has raised over USD400 million through a sale-and-leaseback transaction covering four A350-900s.

The airline said it sold the aircraft to GECAS and Gilead Aviation, a JV between GECAS and PIMCO, which will lease them back to the airline on 12-year contracts on average. The airline confirmed to ch-aviation that it sold OH-LWK (msn 113), OH-LWL (msn 134), and OH-LWM (msn 264) to GECAS. Gilead Aviation bought OH-LWN (msn 273).

Following the transaction, out of Finnair’s sixteen A350-900s, the company owns five and leases the remaining eleven from GECAS (five, including one via Gilead Aviation), Nomura Babcock & Brown (four), Avolon, and Stratos (one each). The carrier has a further three units of the type on firm order from Airbus with deliveries due in the second quarter of 2022, the fourth quarter of 2024, and the first quarter of 2025.

Finnair said that it would use the proceeds to refinance its existing debt and close the undrawn credit line of EUR175 million euros (USD205 million). The transaction is the single largest financing deal in the airline’s history.

The ch-aviation fleets ownership module shows that Finnair’s fleet is almost evenly split between owned (27) and leased (32) aircraft.