SMBC Aviation Capital orders 115 Airbus aircraft

SMBC Aviation Capital, the world’s third largest aircraft lessor, has placed a firm order with Airbus for 110 A320neo aircraft and five A320ceo aircraft in a deal worth around $11.8bn at list prices. The deal is the largest single-aisle aircraft order ever placed by a lessor and the largest aircraft order of any kind by a Japanese-owned lessor. As part of the order, SMBC Aviation Capital has options to convert the majority of the A320neo aircraft and all of the A320ceo aircraft into the A321 variants. The company will announce its engines selection at a later date.