AerCap offshoot Milestone Aviation Group (Milestone) has agreed to sell a 12-helicopter portfolio to Macquarie Rotorcraft. The portfolio will comprise a combination of Sikorsky S-92, Airbus H135, Bell 412 and Leonardo AW109, AW139 and AW189 helicopters which are presently on lease to six customers in nine countries across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and South-East Asia. These particular aircraft are being deployed across a variety of missions including offshore energy, EMS, and police services.
“Unlike the fixed-wing market, portfolio sales have not been as prevalent in helicopter leasing. This transaction between the two leading owners of leased rotorcraft, is another example of the growing maturity of the helicopter leasing sector and reinforces the strong liquidity that we are seeing,” said Pat Sheedy, the CEO of Milestone. “The ability to trade on lease assets is a critical part of portfolio management for lessors of scale and we are pleased to partner with such a strong industry player as Macquarie Rotorcraft, and to work together to execute what is a sizeable portfolio transaction.”
“We are excited to partner with Milestone on this important transaction. Acquiring these assets expands our ability to meet the growing needs of our customers and demonstrates the increasing sophistication of the helicopter finance market,” said John Petkovic, CEO of Macquarie Rotorcraft.
Milestone is one of the world’s leading helicopter leasing and financing companies which partners with helicopter operators worldwide to provide a broad range of financial and productivity solutions, including operating leases, purchase/leasebacks, secured debt financing, engine leasing and fleet advisory. Milestone supports more than 50 customers in over 40 countries serving a variety of industries, including offshore oil and gas, search and rescue, emergency medical services, police surveillance, mining, fire-fighting, and other utility missions.
Macquarie Rotorcraft provides specialised helicopter leasing, financing, and business solutions to 30 customers in 32 countries and has offices in Dallas, Limerick, London, Singapore, and Cape Town.