Willis Lease Finance Corporation reported it closed a private placement of $233 million of new 13-15 year term notes for Willis Engine Securitization Trust (WEST) on March 28, 2008. The proceeds of the term notes were used to repay existing warehouse borrowings totaling $164 million and to purchase 11 engines from Willis Lease. WEST issued $200 million of new warehouse notes in December 2007, which remain undrawn.

AAR acquires Trax to accelerate digital solutions strategy
Chicago-headquartered AAR CORP. (AAR) has announced its acquisition of Trax Corp. (trax), a leading independent provider of aircraft MRO and fleet management software to accelerate its digital solutions strategy. AAR is a global aerospace and defence aftermarket solutions company with operations in over 20 countries. It supports commercial and government customers through two operating segments: