Dubai Aerospace Enterprise Acquires 17 Aircraft for $1 Billion

As part of its fleet expansion programme, Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE) Ltd, the global aviation services corporation, on Friday announced that it had signed agreements with multiple counterparties to acquire 17 aircraft for an aggregate consideration of approximately $1 billion.

This portfolio is comprised of 100% next-generation aircraft, of which 89% are narrow body aircraft and 80% of the aircraft are manufactured by Airbus and 20% are manufactured by Boeing. These 17 aircraft are on lease to 11 airlines in 10 countries.

Upon completion, these aircraft are expected to reduce DAE’s weighted average passenger fleet age to 6.9 years and increase DAE’s weighted average passenger fleet lease term remaining to 6.6 years. Additionally, on completion, DAE’s pro-forma fleet composition is expected to be 46% Airbus aircraft, 49% Boeing aircraft, and 5% ATR 72-600.

DAE CEO Firoz Tarapore said that consistent with their commitment to improve the next generation content of our fleet and reduce the fleet average age, they were delighted to add these modern, fuel-efficient, next-generation technology assets to our portfolio.

“This transaction also allows us to further deepen our relationship with our global base of airline customers, and we welcome three airline customers back to DAE. Amid ongoing orderbook delivery delays, we are continuing to source attractive assets in the secondary market to meet our growth and portfolio management targets,” Tarapore added.

Popular Single Aisle Aircraft

The A320 Family is the world’s most popular single aisle aircraft having won over 18,000 orders from over 300 customers in all markets. The A321neo is the largest member of Airbus’ A320neo Family, offering unparalleled range and performance.

By incorporating new generation engines and Sharklets, the A321neo brings a 50% noise reduction and at least 20% fuel savings and CO2 reduction compared to previous generation single-aisle aircraft, while maximizing passenger comfort in the widest single-aisle cabin in the sky.

The 737 MAX family delivers enhanced efficiency, improved environmental performance, and increased passenger comfort to the single-aisle market.

Incorporating advanced technology winglets and efficient engines, the 737 MAX family offers excellent economics, reducing fuel use and emissions by 20% while producing a 50% smaller noise footprint than the airplanes it replaces. Additionally, the 737 MAX family offers up to 14% lower airframe maintenance costs than the competition.

DAE Acquisitions

It may be recalled that DAE has acquired 100% of the Nordic Aviation Capital group of companies (NAC), an aircraft leasing company formed over 30 years ago, in January this year. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

As of September 2024, NAC’s fleet comprised of 252 owned and committed assets on lease to approximately 60 airline customers in approximately 40 countries.

On a pro forma basis, DAE Capital’s fleet will comprise of approximately 750 owned, managed and committed aircraft with a total value of approximately $22 billion on lease to approximately 170 airline customers in approximately 70 countries.