Due to organic growth the company is seeking a structured finance professional with prior experience in the structuring and negotiation of Aircraft Finance transactions.

The Role:

The company utilises a variety of financial structures to complete commercial aircraft transactions. The successful candidate will be required to have a reasonable level of knowledge across a variety of transaction types and manage the deal from cradle to grave from the finance perspective. Ultimately, the individual will comfortable operating between asset classes and any of the major global debt markets.

Key Responsibilities:

• Structuring, pricing, negotiation and contracting of finance commitments.
• Negotiating internal approval of such financial commitments. 
• Negotiation and execution of required debt and equity participations in order to fulfil the contracted commitments. 
• Management, compliance and reporting of the ongoing portfolio and any potential liabilities. Experience:

The candidate should be able to demonstrate or develop the following:

• A proven track record in the aviation finance industry at a hands on structuring level. An understanding of the commercial and market trends that drive the industry. 
• Knowledge of the financial products generally used in commercial aviation. 
• Knowledge of and relationships with the main financial institutions that deal in aircraft finance, with a focus on commercial aviation. 
• The ability to negotiate contracts at a board level with a detailed knowledge of aircraft finance transactions.
• Proactive management of the portfolio to identify exposures and reduce risk.

The position will require regular travel to meet with customers mainly within EMEA but may require other geographical coverage. It is a hands on position that will require the successful individual to handle all aspects of the deal.

 The package will be negotiated and tailored to the selected individual.

All applications are treated in the strictest confidence! Interested to apply or learn more about the position? Please send your CV or enquire to Keith Garry Tel: +353 86 8233084 Email: keith@aircraftleasing.ie

Peak Performance Recruitment specialise in the aviation finance industry globally for information on other roles please visit www.aircraftfinance.ie

The rating change, which means that the company is no longer likely to face a downgrade over the coming 12 to 18 months, is based on the company’s improved liquidity, Moody’s said in a statement.

Moody’s rates ILFC B, five steps below investment grade.

ILFC has needed to rely on support from parent AIG since the firm lost access to the capital markets in 2008 and 2009 as concerns grew about the company’s funding model.

Its ratings have improved in recent months, however, as it regains access to the debt markets and generates internal cash flows.

ILFC on Wednesday came to market with new debt sales totalling $4.4 billion, including $3.9 billion in secured debt and $500 million in unsecured bonds.

The company will have sold a total of $8.45 billion in new debt this year including today’s transactions, which have been used to repay maturing debt and extend debt maturities, Moody’s said.

Source – Reuters

Peak Performance specialise in the recruitment for the aircraft leasing industry globally. We have openings in Marketing, Technical, Legal and Structured Finance. For further information please view www.aircraftleasing.ie

June 2010

Dublin based aircraft leasing company AWAS, controlled by Terra Firma, announced today that Ray Sisson will become its new CEO on August 26th.

On behalf of the Board of Directors, its chairman Werner Seifert stated “I would like to welcome Ray to AWAS, the Board believes he is the right person to lead the company in its next stage of development and take advantage of the many opportunities that lie ahead”.

Ray Sisson began his career in New York as a corporate lawyer, Ray moved into the aviation industry in 1995 becoming Vice President and Legal Counsel for GE Commercial Aviation Services (GECAS) in Shannon, Ireland. In 1998, he became GECAS’ Senior Vice President, Sales & Marketing – Asia/Pacific, based in Singapore before moving to Dubai to become Senior Vice President & Regional Manager – Middle East, Africa& Russia/CIS in 2003. In October 2008, Ray left GECAS to take up the position of President & CEO at Titan Aviation.

Prior to becoming CEO at AWAS, he was Chief Commercial Officer of SR Technics Switzerland. In this global role, Ray led all commercial and customer facing activities. SR Technics offers a wide range of products in the aircraft component services field. These include components exchange, maintenance, repair, engineering, logistics and pooling, along with overall component management.

www.aircraftleasing.ie

As the lease administrator you will be responsible for the customer relationship post sales and control the asset throughout the lease lifecycle.

Key duties:

• Uploading of utilisation reports and invoice generation
• Management and processing of maintenance reserves
• Ensure compliance of lease conditions by the airline customer
• Reporting on reserve funds, rentals and maintenance shop visits
• Escalation an coordination of issues to relevant internal departments

The position requires that a person have prior experience working in the aircraft leasing industry and working knowledge of maintenance reserves and the ability to understand and apply the terms of complex lease contracts

Interested? Please apply to Keith Garry +353 (0)86          8233084 or keith@aircraftleasing.ie

Peak Performance specialise in the recruitment for the aircraft leasing industry globally. We have openings in Marketing, Technical, Legal and Structured Finance. For further information please view www.aircraftleasing.ie

The ideal candidate will have previous experience as a legal counsel in an aircraft leasing / finance company and have transacted and negotiated aircraft lease, purchase and sale agreements.

As the In-House Legal Counsel for this Aircraft Leasing Company you will display some of the following skills

• Prepare, draft and review all legal documentation relation to the lease and financial structures of the lease agreement
• Commercial negotiation of lease, delivery and acceptance terms direct with the customer
• Administration of legal documentation
• Previous experience in aircraft leasing is a must

The role will be based in Dublin, Ireland and will offer a highly competitive salary, bonus and relocation package.

Interested in this Aircraft Leasing In-House Legal Counsel position? Please apply or enquire to Keith Garry +353 (0)86 8233084 or email keith@aircraftleasing.ie

For more aircraft leasing positions legal or otherwise please visit our website www.aircraftleasing.ie

Peak Performance specialise in the recruitment for the aircraft leasing industry globally. We have openings in Marketing, Technical, Legal and Structured Finance

Location: USA

This is a new opening with a midsized lessor based in the USA. Due to growth in the current portfolio the company are now seeking a senior legal counsel who has the ability to draft and negotiate; sale, purchase and lease agreements for commercial aircraft.

The company have a committed budget for the acquisition of new transactions focusing on the new gen commercial aircraft market.

•Review, draft and negotiate lease agreements, sale agreements, novations, amendments and any ancillary documents.
•Researching cross border lease structures.
•General counsel and some familiarity in export compliance
•Liaise with other internal departments to gather appropriate information required for the closing of the transaction
This is a project management position whereby the legal counsel will be responsible for the deal post LOI until close spearheading the deal process.

As the legal function grows the successful candidate will be expected to assist with best practice implementation and standardisation.

Candidates should ideally be qualified through UK or NY bar and must have previous experience in the transactions of aircraft purchase or lease either within an aircraft leasing company or aviation practice.

The company will consider relocation and sponsorship for the right candidate.

Please apply or enquire to Keith Garry

MB +353 86 8233084
Email keith@aircraftleasing.ie

Interested in other positions or locations within aircraft leasing? Please call to enquire or visit www.aircraftleasing.ie

Peak Performance Specialise in the recruitment of the aircraft leasing industry globally with open positions in Marketing, Technical, Legal, Structured Finance and Asset Management.

March 2010

Hong Kong Aviation Company (“HKAC”), a leading investor in global aviation finance, announced today that Mathis Shinnick has been appointed Chief Executive Officer.  Mr. Shinnick will be based in Hong Kong and comes to HKAC from HSH-Nordbank AG where he held the position of Global Head of Transportation since 2004.  Mr. Shinnick is expected to begin his appointment May 1, 2010.

“We view Mr. Shinnick’s appointment as a very important step in HKAC’s development and planned international expansion,” said Adam Tan, Executive Director, HNA Group and Chairman, Hong Kong Aviation Company.  ”Mr. Shinnick’s 20 years of experience in the transportation sector will help us achieve our long-term objective of deploying significant capital in transportation-related assets.  In addition, his management experience will help us rapidly consolidate the existing lease management business within the recently acquired Allco aviation portfolio and help position HKAC as a leader in the global aircraft leasing marketplace.”

“Mathis Shinnick is a highly respected and globally acknowledged leader in the transportation finance sector,” said Bharat Bhise, CEO of Bravia Capital Partners and investor in HKAC.  ”His hiring is a further sign of our commitment to recruit the best available talent in the industry.  His experience at Chase Securities and HSH-Nordbank will be invaluable in directing our long term strategic vision for HKAC.  Mr. Shinnick is intimately familiar, not only with the types of assets we are financing, but also the complex structures associated with such financings.”  

Mr. Shinnick most recently held the position of Global Head of Transportation at HSH-Nordbank AG.  Prior to HSH-Nordbank AG, Mr. Shinnick was Head of Transportation at Deloitte & Touche Corporate Finance where he significantly expanded the firm’s penetration into the transportation industry as a Lead M&A Advisor.  He also previously held the position of Co-Head of Global Aviation at Chase Securities where he led the league tables as agent and arranger for aerospace and defense debt financing.   Mr. Shinnick has an MBA in international management from the American Graduate School of International Management and a BBA in accounting from the Robert O. Anderson School of Business, University of New Mexico.

HKAC plans to expand its employee presence globally over the next 12 months.  The firm recently secured a portfolio of nearly US$3 billion in assets by completing its acquisition of Allco Aviation in early January 2010.  As part of the acquisition, HKAC retained the entire existing management team of the Allco Aviation portfolio.

About Hong Kong Aviation Company

Hong Kong Aviation Company (“HKAC”) is a diversified player in the aviation industry.  HKAC is headquartered out of Hong Kong, with offices in Sydney and London.  The firm invests in commercial aircraft leases and financial instruments, and also provides aircraft management and advisory services.  HKAC’s mission is to prudently invest in the global transportation and infrastructure sectors for consistent and long-term returns, creating value for its investors and clients alike.  HKAC has a highly capable team with skills and experience in both the financial industry and the management of aircraft assets.  

www.aircraftleasing.ie

 This Aviation Finance Company based in the UK provides a global finance function serving the commercial aircraft industry. With a significant customer base they are well known by many airlines and aircraft leasing companies worldwide.

 The company is seeking a structured finance professional with prior experience in the structuring and negotiation of Aviation Finance transactions.

The Role:

 The team members each manage the customer accounts for a specific geographical region. They will manage the relationships and transaction from cradle to grave from the finance perspective. Ultimately, the individual will be expected to be comfortable operating between asset classes and any of the major global debt markets. Average transactions are cross-border, between US$100m and US$200m in size.

Key Responsibilities:  

• Structuring, pricing, negotiation and contracting of finance commitments.
• Negotiating internal approval of such financial commitments.
• Origination, negotiation and execution of required debt and equity participations in order to fulfil the contracted commitments.
• Sourcing and management of internal and external parties to ensure transactions close in a timely manner (legal, accounting, tax, technical etc).
• Management, compliance and reporting of the ongoing contingent liabilities resulting from any commitment or transaction within the portfolio.

Experience:

The candidate should be able to demonstrate or develop the following: 

• A proven track record in the aviation finance or aircraft / engine leasing industry at a hands on structuring level. An understanding of the commercial and market trends that drive the industry.
• Knowledge of the financial products generally used in commercial aviation. 
• Knowledge of and relationships with the main financial institutions that deal in secured asset finance, with a focus on commercial aviation.  
• The ability to negotiate contracts at a board level with a detailed knowledge of asset finance transactions.  
• Proactive management of the portfolio to identify exposures and reduce risk.  

The position will require regular travel to meet with customers mainly within EMEA but may require other geographical coverage. It is a hands on position that will require the successful individual to handle all aspects of the deal.

The package will be negotiated and tailored to the selected individual.

All applications are treated in the strictest confidence!

Interested to apply or learn more about the position? Please send your CV or enquire to Keith Garry Tel: +353 86 8233084 Email: keith@aircraftleasing.ie

This year seemed to me a marked improvement on last year’s conference in terms of the mood and the turn out.

The industry appears excited about the new lessors entering the market and the strong presence of the Chinese Financial Institutions who appear to be gaining momentum in foreign investments. It is rumoured that some of the Chinese backed lessors will establish operations in Europe over the coming year!! Some think that the lead in time for the new lessors to start making a positive effect in the market will be 6 -12 months.

From talking to a number of clients during the conference there appears to be a number of people who have secured new equity and ready to invest. Some will take the approach of 100% equity deals while others will be more reliant on debt to secure transactions.

Although debt is still not readily available I was pleased to hear of 2^nd and 3^rd tier lessors securing debt over the past 12 months.

One of the not so good news pointed out that the number of financial institutions in the aviation finance industry has significantly dropped (nothing we didn’t know). Players now need to work harder to secure debt and will have to pay more for it. How long will this last? Who knows?

Overall the shakeup of the industry over the last 12 months has left those still standing relieved that their business models have survived and ready to embrace the long awaited upturn. The mood from the platforms up for sale is that it will be a long process.

Please feel free to share your thoughts and findings with the rest of the group!

Keith Garry

 I look forward to seeing some of you at the upcoming ISTAT conference in Orlando

www.aircraftleasing.ie

The position will require the successful candidate to originate, price, negotiate and close aircraft finance transactions globally.

The ideal candidate will have prior experience structuring and pricing commercial aircraft transactions with good knowledge of the debt markets and various products.

This position is open to candidates outside the UK.

Interested in the position? Please contact Keith Garry on +353 86 8233084 or email keith@aircraftleasing.ie

Interested in other positions in the aircraft leasing / finance industry please view my website www.aircraftleasing.ie