Porter Airlines announced in a press release that it is finalizing the sale and leaseback agreements for up to 19 Embraer E195-E2 aircraft.
Three leasing companies, Azorra Aviation Holdings and Falko Regional Aircraft, will purchase and lease back 5 units each, and Elevate Capital Partners will lease back the other 4.
Porter also estimates that it will be able to lease 5 additional aircraft of the same model with Azorra, which would bring the total number of units to the planned 19.
«The completion of the lease agreements with three high-quality partners such as Azorra, Falko, and Elevate demonstrates confidence in Porter’s plan to expand its North American network using E2 aircraft,» said Porter Airlines Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Jeffrey Brown.
Through data provided by our partner Aeroin, we learned that the 19 Embraer E195-E2s will be delivered to the Canadian carrier between 2022 and 2023 as part of a confirmed order for 30 aircraft of the same model.
The airline announced its plans to use these units for «popular» routes to Ottawa, Montreal, Halifax and Toronto, and that «the introduction of specific routes will be determined prior to delivery of the aircraft.»
The leaseback process involves the former owner of an asset (in this case Porter) selling an aircraft to another company (in this case, leasing companies) and leasing back the same aircraft. This usually occurs in cases where companies are in need of capital and have high-value fixed assets, but cannot give up these assets to operate.
Leaseback is also a good alternative for companies that need to obtain working capital and must secure funds for projects aimed at growth and expansion as a company.
