Sale and Lease Back is a practical fleet modernisation avenue for many airlines across the globe.
NAIROBI, Kenya, May 4 – Kenya Airways (KQ) has entered into a Sale and Lease Back transaction for the three B787-8 Dreamliners to be delivered this year with AWAS Aviation Trading Limited, a leasing company based in Ireland.
The three Dreamliners, to be delivered in May, June and July 2015 will be leased through AWAS rather than financed on the balance sheet of Kenya Airways.
Signing the deal, Kenya Airways CEO Mbuvi Ngunze said the transaction would be beneficial to the company’s balance sheet as it seeks to improve its liquidity.
“Given our current financing, we must be prudent in finding innovative financing solutions while keeping with our growth ambition. The new aircraft will be important additions to our fleet as we strive to give our guests the best experience,” he said.
AWAS is a global leader in commercial aircraft sale and leasing with a portfolio of over 300 aircraft for customers around the world.
“AWAS has proven to be a valuable, responsive and flexible business partner and we are thankful for their support. This means we meet our guest expectations with the youngest fleet in Africa as per our promise,” Mbuvi added.
The first of the three aircrafts under this agreement arrived in Nairobi on Saturday directly from the Boeing facility in Charleston, South Carolina, USA.
This is the seventh of the nine Dreamliners ordered by Kenya Airways.
Sale and Lease Back is a practical fleet modernisation avenue for many airlines across the globe.
