The information in this preliminary prospectus is not complete and may be changed. We may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This preliminary prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities and we are not soliciting offers to buy these securities in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale is not permitted.
As Filed Pursuant to Rule 424A
Registration No. 333-144468
PROSPECTUS (Subject to Completion)
Issued July 23, 2007
20,000,000 Shares
AerCap Holdings N.V.
ORDINARY SHARES
The selling shareholders are offering 20,000,000 ordinary shares of AerCap Holdings N.V. We will not receive any proceeds from the sale of ordinary shares by the selling shareholders. Members of our senior management and our Board of Directors, as indirect shareholders, will receive a portion of the proceeds from this offering.
Our ordinary shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "AER". The last reported sale price of our ordinary shares on the New York Stock Exchange on July 19, 2007 was $31.00 per share.
Investing in our ordinary shares involves risks. See "Risk Factors" beginning on page 15 of this prospectus.
Price $ Per Share
|
Price to Public |
Underwriting Discounts and Commissions |
Proceeds to Selling Shareholders |
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---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Per Ordinary Share | $ | $ | $ | |||
Total | $ | $ | $ |
The selling shareholders have granted the underwriters the right for a period of 30 days to purchase up to an additional 3,000,000 ordinary shares to cover overallotments, if any.
The Securities and Exchange Commission and state securities regulators have not approved or disapproved these securities, or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
The underwriters expect to deliver the ordinary shares to purchasers on , 2007.
Morgan Stanley |
Goldman, Sachs & Co. |
Lehman Brothers |
Merrill Lynch & Co. |
UBS Investment Bank | Wachovia Securities | |
JPMorgan |
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Citi | ||
Calyon Securities (USA) Inc. |
, 2007
Prospectus Summary | 1 | |
Risk Factors | 15 | |
Special Note About Forward Looking Statements | 36 | |
Use of Proceeds | 37 | |
Price Range Of Our Ordinary Shares | 38 | |
Dividend Policy | 39 | |
Capitalization | 40 | |
Selected Consolidated Financial Data | 41 | |
Unaudited Consolidated Pro Forma Financial Information | 46 | |
Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations | 51 | |
Aircraft, Engine and Aviation Parts Industry | 88 | |
Business |
112 |
|
Indebtedness | 135 | |
Management | 144 | |
Principal and Selling Shareholders | 154 | |
Description of Ordinary Shares | 158 | |
Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions | 162 | |
Ordinary Shares Eligible for Future Sale | 164 | |
Tax Considerations | 166 | |
Underwriters | 174 | |
Enforcement of Civil Liabilities | 179 | |
Legal Matters | 180 | |
Experts | 180 | |
Where You Can Find More Information | 180 | |
Index to Consolidated Financial Statements | F-1 |
You should only rely on the information contained in this prospectus and any free writing prospectus prepared by or on behalf of us. This prospectus may only be used where it is legal to offer or sell these securities. The information in this prospectus is accurate only as of the date of this prospectus, regardless of when this prospectus is delivered or when any offer or sale of our ordinary shares occurs.
Neither we nor the selling shareholders have taken any action to permit a public offering of the ordinary shares outside the United States. Persons outside the United States who come into possession of this prospectus must inform themselves about and observe any restrictions relating to the offering of the ordinary shares and the distribution of this prospectus outside of the United States.
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The following summary is qualified in its entirety by the more detailed information and consolidated financial statements and related notes appearing in this prospectus. This summary may not contain all of the information that may be important to you. Before investing in our ordinary shares, you should read this entire prospectus carefully for a more complete understanding of our business and this offering, including our consolidated financial statements and related notes and the sections entitled "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations". In this prospectus, the "Company", "we", "us" and "our" refer to AerCap Holdings N.V., its consolidated subsidiaries, its predecessors, AerCap Holdings C.V. and AerCap B.V. (formerly known as debis AirFinance B.V.) and their consolidated subsidiaries and, unless the context otherwise requires, AeroTurbine, Inc.
Our Company
We are an integrated global aviation company with a leading market position in aircraft and engine leasing, trading and parts sales. We possess extensive aviation expertise that permits us to extract value from every stage of an aircraft's lifecycle across a broad range of aircraft and engine types. We also provide aircraft management services and perform aircraft and engine maintenance, repair and overhaul, or MRO, services and aircraft disassemblies through our certified repair stations. We believe that by applying our expertise through an integrated business model, we will be able to identify and execute on a broad range of market opportunities that we expect will generate attractive returns for our shareholders.
We operate our business on a global basis, providing aircraft, engines and parts to customers in every major geographical region. As of March 31, 2007, we owned 140 aircraft and 65 engines, managed 98 aircraft, had 95 new aircraft and three new engines on order, had entered into purchase contracts for two new aircraft and had executed letters of intent to purchase an additional six aircraft. In addition, on May 11, 2007, we signed an agreement with Airbus for the purchase of an additional ten A330-200 aircraft, bringing our total firm order of A330-200 aircraft to 30 and the total number of new aircraft on order to 105. As of March 2007, we had the fourth largest aircraft leasing portfolio in the world and the third largest new aircraft order book among operating lessors, according to Simat Helliesen & Eichner, Inc., or SH&E, in each case by number of aircraft.
We lease most of our aircraft to airlines under operating leases. Under an operating lease, the lessee is responsible for the maintenance and servicing of the equipment during the lease term and the lessor receives the benefit, and assumes the risk, of the residual value of the equipment at the end of the lease. As of March 31, 2007, our owned and managed aircraft and engines were leased to 105 commercial airline and cargo operator customers in 46 countries and are managed from our offices in The Netherlands, Ireland and the United States. We expect to expand our leasing activity in Asia and in China in particular through our AerDragon joint venture with China Aviation Supplies Import & Export Group Corporation, which commenced operations in October 2006.
We have the infrastructure, expertise and resources to execute a large number of diverse aircraft and engine transactions in a variety of market conditions. Our teams of dedicated marketing and asset trading professionals have been successful in leasing and trading our aircraft and engine portfolios. From January 1, 2003 to March 31, 2007, we executed over 1,100 aircraft and engine transactions, including 283 aircraft leases, 275 engine leases, 158 aircraft purchase or sale transactions, 204 engine purchase or sale transactions and the disassembly of 54 aircraft and 139 engines. Between January 1, 2003 and March 31, 2007, our weighted average owned aircraft utilization rate was 98.6%.
In 2006, we generated total revenues of $814.4 million and net income of $109.0 million, which included charges for share-based compensation of $68.3 million, net of taxes, resulting in basic and fully-diluted earnings per share of $1.38. In the three months ended March 31, 2007, we generated total
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revenues of $309.5 million and net income of $60.6 million, resulting in basic and fully-diluted earnings per share of $0.71.
On September 8, 2006, the Financial Accounting Standards Board issued FSP No. AUG AIR-1 "Accounting for Planned Major Maintenance Activities" (the "FSP"). The FSP amends certain provisions in the AICPA Industry Audit Guide, "Audit of Airlines," and is applicable for our financial year beginning January 1, 2007. As a result of our adoption of the FSP, we have adjusted our method of accounting for certain maintenance obligations and adjusted our historical results as more fully explained in our audited financial statements included in this prospectus.
Our Business Strategy
We intend to pursue the following business strategies. See "BusinessOur Business Strategy" beginning on page 114 of this prospectus for a more detailed discussion of our business strategies.
Leverage Our Ability to Manage Aircraft and Engines Profitably throughout their Lifecycle. We intend to continue to leverage our integrated business model by selectively:
Our ability to profitably manage aircraft throughout their lifecycle depends in part on our ability to successfully lease aircraft and engines at profitable rates and our ability to source acquisition opportunities of new and used aircraft at favorable prices.
Expand Our Aircraft and Engine Portfolio. We intend to grow our portfolio of aircraft and engines through portfolio purchases, new aircraft purchases, airline refleetings, and other opportunistic aircraft and engine purchases.
Focus on High Growth Markets. Although we maintain a geographically diverse portfolio, we focus on high growth airline markets such as the Asia-Pacific market.
Enter into Joint Ventures to Obtain Economies of Scale. We intend to continue to enter into joint ventures that increase our purchasing power and our ability to obtain price discounts on large aircraft orders.
Obtain Maintenance Cost Savings. We intend to lower our aircraft and engine maintenance costs by using aircraft and engine parts we obtain from the selective disassembly of acquired airframes and engines.
Acquire Complementary Businesses. We intend to selectively pursue acquisitions that we believe will enhance our ability to manage aircraft and engines profitably throughout their lifecycle.
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Our Competitive Strengths
We believe the following competitive strengths will allow us to capitalize on growth opportunities in the global commercial aviation market. See "BusinessOur Competitive Strengths" beginning on page 112 of this prospectus for a more detailed discussion of our competitive strengths.
Risks
An investment in our ordinary shares involves a high degree of risk. You should carefully consider the risks described in "Risk Factors" before making an investment decision. Our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected by any of those risks. The trading price of our ordinary shares could decline due to any of those risks or other factors, and you may lose all or part of your investment. Below is a summary of the principal risks we face.
3
Industry Trends
We believe that trends in the aviation industry identified by SH&E, a recognized expert in the aviation industry, and described in "Aircraft, Engine and Aviation Parts Industry" create a favorable environment for us to leverage our competitive strengths and grow our business. We believe that our operating capabilities and aircraft and engine portfolios will provide us with a competitive advantage in the expanding aviation market. The trends identified by SH&E include:
Growing Demand for Air Travel. Globalization and the rapid economic growth in major emerging markets such as India and China have fueled significant growth in global demand for air travel. The Airline Monitor, a commercial aviation data analysis publication, forecasts that passenger traffic will grow at an average rate of 5.2% per year for the next 10 years. The Airbus 2006 Global Market Forecast predicts that air travel demand will continue to grow an average of 4.8% per year through 2025 and the Boeing 2006 Commercial Market Outlook projects 4.9% annual growth in air travel for the next 20 years. According to SH&E, air cargo demand globally is expected to grow even faster than passenger demand. For the next 20 years Airbus and Boeing forecast air cargo demand growth of 6.0% and 6.1% annually, respectively.
Fundamental Imbalance between Supply and Demand for Aircraft, Engines and Aircraft Equipment. In recent years, the increased demand for aircraft, engines and parts, combined with a decreased supply, has resulted in a supply and demand imbalance for certain aircraft, engines and parts. The primary factors affecting aircraft demand include rapid airline passenger growth in emerging markets, increased liberalization of air travel, higher fuel prices, continued emergence of low cost carriers and industry restructuring in developed markets which have increased replacement demand for more fuel efficient and technologically advanced aircraft. The primary factors affecting aircraft supply include the aging world aircraft fleet, the significant backlog of aircraft production, the limited ability of airframe manufacturers to increase production and the relative shortage of efficient used aircraft in the secondary market.
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Greater Reliance on Operating Leases. In recent years, airlines have increasingly turned to operating leases to meet their aircraft financing needs. Operating leases permit airlines to reduce their capital commitments, improve their balance sheets, increase fleet planning flexibility and reduce residual value risk. According to SH&E, approximately 30% of the global aircraft fleet was operated under operating leases in 2006 and SH&E forecasts that 40% of the global aircraft fleet will be operated under operating leases within the next ten years.
Despite these positive recent trends, the business of leasing, financing and sales of aircraft, engine and parts has, in the past, experienced periods of aircraft and engine oversupply. The oversupply of a specific type of aircraft or engine is likely to depress the lease rates for, and the value of, that type of aircraft or engine. The supply and demand for aircraft and engines is affected by various cyclical and non-cyclical factors that are outside of our control.
Recent Developments
On May 8, 2007, Aircraft Lease Securitisation, a lease securitization special purpose entity that we consolidate in our financial statements, completed a refinancing of its securitized notes with the issuance of $1.66 billion of AAA-rated class G-3 floating rate notes. The proceeds from the issuance of these notes were used to redeem all of the outstanding Aircraft Lease Securitisation debt, other than the most junior class of notes, to refinance the indebtedness that had been incurred to purchase 24 previously acquired aircraft, and to finance the purchase of four additional new aircraft, increasing Aircraft Lease Securitisation's aircraft portfolio size to 70 aircraft. The class G-3 notes bear an interest rate of one-month LIBOR plus 26 basis points. Concurrently with the Aircraft Lease Securitisation refinancing, our revolving credit facility was amended and restated, resulting in a reduced interest rate spread and a two-year extension of the revolving period to May 2010. The size of our revolving credit facility remains $1.0 billion. As a result of the Aircraft Lease Securitisation refinancing and the amendment to our revolving credit facility, we expect to report a non-recurring expense in the second quarter of 2007 of approximately $27 million for the write-off of unamortized debt issuance costs related to the refinanced debt, costs related to the prepayment of the prior Aircraft Lease Securitisation notes and other related fees.
During the three months ended June 30, 2007, in addition to sales of parts inventory and one aircraft by our subsidiary, AeroTurbine, we sold one Airbus A321 aircraft and one Boeing 737-400 aircraft, both of which were previously classified as flight equipment held for operating leases. Sales revenue resulting from the sale of these two aircraft totaled $57.4 million. The cost of goods sold related to the sale of these two aircraft totaled $37.8 million. During the three months ended June 30, 2007, we took delivery of one Airbus A320-200 aircraft, one A319-100 aircraft and one Boeing 737-800, each of which we had contracted to purchase in prior periods. In addition, AeroTurbine, our subsidiary, purchased two Airbus A320-200 aircraft, two Boeing 757 aircraft, three Bombardier aircraft and one McDonnell Douglas MD-83 aircraft in the three months ending June 30, 2007. At June 30, 2007, the gross book value of flight equipment we expect to take delivery of during the full year 2007, based on contracted purchase agreements and signed letters of intent was $791.9 million. Of that amount, approximately $458.6 million was delivered to us during the first six months of 2007, including the aircraft discussed above delivered during the three months ended June 30, 2007.
During the three months ended June 30, 2007, we reached an agreement on the value of a damages claim we had filed with a previous lessee which had filed for bankruptcy protection. We had previously sold our claim to a third party subject to final valuation of the claim. We recognized a gain of $9.0 million upon signing the settlement agreement with the airline which will be recorded as other income in our consolidated income statement for the three months ended June 30, 2007.
During the three months ended June 30, 2007, we executed sale agreements for the sale of three Airbus A330-300 aircraft subject to leases, which we delivered in July 2007. In addition, we executed
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agreements for the sale of two A300 freighter aircraft subject to leases, of which one is expected to be delivered in September 2007 and the other is expected to be delivered in September 2008. The aggregate sales price for the four aircraft to be delivered in the three months ending September 30, 2007 was approximately $170 million.
Our Corporate History and Shareholding Structure
We were formed as a Netherlands public limited liability company ("naamloze vennootschap") on July 10, 2006 to acquire all of the assets and liabilities of AerCap Holdings C.V. a Netherlands limited partnership. AerCap Holdings C.V. was formed on June 27, 2005 for the purpose of acquiring all of the shares and certain liabilities of AerCap B.V. (formerly known as debis AirFinance B.V.). On June 30, 2005, AerCap Holdings C.V. acquired all of AerCap B.V.'s shares and liabilities owed by AerCap B.V. to its prior shareholders, the 2005 Acquisition, for total consideration of $1.4 billion, $370.0 million of which was funded with equity contributions by the selling shareholders. Substantially all of the equity funding for the 2005 Acquisition was provided by funds and accounts affiliated with Cerberus, who will retain control of us after this offering. Certain members of our senior management and of our Board of Directors are also indirect shareholders of the selling shareholders. On April 26, 2006, we acquired all of the existing share capital of AeroTurbine, Inc. an engine leasing, trading and parts sales company, the AeroTurbine Acquisition. On October 27, 2006, AerCap Holdings N.V. acquired all of the assets and liabilities of AerCap Holdings C.V. and on November 27, 2006, we completed an initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange, in which we issued and sold an additional 6.8 million of our ordinary shares and Cerberus sold 19.3 million of our ordinary shares.
Based on an assumed public offering price of $31.00 per ordinary share, the last reported sale price of our ordinary shares on the NYSE on July 19, 2007, funds and accounts affiliated with Cerberus and certain members of our senior management and of our Board of Directors will receive $490.8 million and $96.1 million, respectively, from the proceeds of this offering if the underwriters do not exercise their overallotment option and $567.6 million and $108.1 million, respectively, from the proceeds of this offering if the underwriters exercise their overallotment option. See "Use of Proceeds" and "Principal and Selling Shareholders" for more information regarding the proceeds that funds and accounts affiliated with Cerberus as well as certain members of our senior management and of our Board of Directors will receive from this offering.
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The following chart sets forth our shareholders' ownership structure prior to this offering.
Our principal executive offices are located at Evert van de Beekstraat 312, 1118 CX Schiphol Airport, The Netherlands, and our general telephone number is +31 20 655-9655. Our website address is www.aercap.com. Information contained on our website does not constitute a part of this prospectus.
* * *
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Explanatory Note Regarding Our Aircraft Portfolio
Unless otherwise noted or the context requires, all references in this prospectus to:
In this prospectus, unless otherwise specified, when we discuss our aircraft portfolio, we describe our owned and managed portfolio as of March 31, 2007. References to lease revenues from our aircraft portfolio are to our owned portfolio for the year ended December 31, 2006, the three months ended March 31, 2007 or other periods where indicated.
The definitions above are intended to include, where the context requires, all relevant aircraft in the same categories in the future. References to the number of aircraft and engines we lease, buy, sell and have on order in this prospectus include our owned and managed aircraft and engines. Also, unless the context otherwise requires, all weighted average age percentages and weighted average lease terms of owned aircraft in this prospectus have been calculated using net book value.
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Ordinary shares offered by the selling shareholders | 20,000,000 shares | |
Overallotment option |
3,000,000 shares |
|
Total ordinary shares outstanding after the offering |
85,036,957 shares |
|
Selling shareholders |
Four Luxembourg limited liability companies indirectly owned by funds and accounts affiliated with Cerberus and certain members of our senior management and of our Board of Directors. |
|
Use of proceeds |
We will not receive any of the proceeds from the sale of ordinary shares by the selling shareholders. Funds and accounts affiliated with Cerberus and certain members of our senior management and of our Board of Directors and an employee of Cerberus will receive all of the net proceeds from the sale of the ordinary shares being offered by the selling shareholders. See "Use of Proceeds". |
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An affiliate of Lehman Brothers Inc. has a 2.7% participation interest in certain funds affiliated with Cerberus and will receive 2.7% of the proceeds received by such funds in this offering. See "Underwriting". |
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Dividend Policy |
To date, we have not declared or paid any dividends on our ordinary shares. We intend to retain our future earnings to fund working capital and our growth and do not expect to pay dividends in the foreseeable future. See "Dividend Policy". |
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Risk Factors |
See "Risk Factors" beginning on page 15 of this prospectus and other information included in this prospectus for a discussion of factors you should carefully consider before deciding to invest in the ordinary shares. |
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New York Stock Exchange Symbol |
"AER". |
|
Tax Considerations |
See "Tax Considerations" beginning on page 166. |
Unless the context otherwise requires, all information in this prospectus assumes the underwriters' overallotment option has not been exercised.
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SUMMARY CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL AND OPERATING DATA
The following table presents AerCap Holdings N.V.'s (the successor company) and AerCap B.V.'s (the predecessor company) summary historical consolidated financial and operating data for each of the periods indicated, prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States, or U.S. GAAP. You should read this information in conjunction with AerCap Holdings N.V.'s audited consolidated financial statements and related notes, unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements and related notes and the information under "Selected Consolidated Financial Data" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" included in this prospectus.
AerCap Holdings N.V. was formed as a Netherlands public limited liability company ("naamloze vennootschap") on July 10, 2006 and acquired all of the assets and liabilities of AerCap Holdings C.V., a Netherlands limited partnership on October 27, 2006. There was no change in accounting basis as a result of this transaction. Since AerCap Holdings C.V. and AerCap Holdings N.V. are entities organized under common control, the historical consolidated financial statements of AerCap Holdings, C.V. became the historical consolidated financial statements of AerCap Holdings N.V. AerCap Holdings C.V. was formed on June 27, 2005 for the purpose of acquiring all of the shares and certain liabilities of AerCap B.V. (formerly known as debis AirFinance B.V.) in connection with the 2005 Acquisition. The financial information presented as of December 31, 2006 and for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2004 and 2006 and the six months ended June 30, 2005 and December 31, 2005 was derived from AerCap Holdings N.V.'s audited consolidated financial statements included in this prospectus. The financial information presented for the three months ended March 31, 2006 and as of and for the three months ended March 31, 2007 was derived from AerCap Holding N.V.'s unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements included in this prospectus. The financial information presented for the three months ended March 31, 2007 is not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2007.
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AerCap B.V. |
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AerCap Holdings N.V. |
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Six months ended June 30, 2005 (adjusted) (1) |
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Six months ended December 31, 2005 (adjusted) (1)(2) |
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Year ended December 31, 2004 (adjusted) (1) |
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Year ended December 31, 2006 (adjusted) (1)(3) |
Three months ended March 31, |
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2006(1) |
2007(1) |
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(In thousands, except share and per share amounts) |
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Consolidated Income Statements Data: | |||||||||||||||||||||
Revenues |
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Lease revenue | $ | 308,500 | $ | 162,155 | $ | 173,568 | $ | 443,925 | $ | 87,941 | $ | 139,703 | |||||||||
Sales revenue | 32,050 | 75,822 | 12,489 | 301,405 | 33,215 | 148,885 | |||||||||||||||
Management fee revenue | 15,009 | 6,512 | 7,674 | 14,072 | 3,681 | 3,025 | |||||||||||||||
Interest revenue | 21,641 | 13,130 | 20,335 | 34,681 | 8,934 | 7,272 | |||||||||||||||
Other revenue | 13,667 | 3,459 | 1,006 | 20,336 | 5,322 | 10,587 | |||||||||||||||
Total revenues | 390,867 | 261,078 | 215,072 | 814,419 | 139,093 | 309,472 | |||||||||||||||
Expenses | |||||||||||||||||||||
Depreciation | 125,877 | 66,407 | 45,918 | 102,387 | 24,324 | 33,932 | |||||||||||||||
Cost of goods sold | 18,992 | 57,632 | 10,574 | 220,277 | 20,502 | 118,003 | |||||||||||||||
Interest on debt | 113,132 | 69,857 | 44,742 | 166,219 | 28,203 | 50,484 | |||||||||||||||
Impairments(4) | 134,671 | | | | | | |||||||||||||||
Other expenses | 68,856 | 32,386 | 26,524 | 46,523 | 9,586 | 10,128 | |||||||||||||||
Selling, general and administrative expenses(5) | 36,449 | 19,559 | 26,949 | 149,364 | 11,133 | 26,585 | |||||||||||||||
Total expenses | 497,977 | 245,841 | 154,707 | 684,770 | 93,748 | 239,132 | |||||||||||||||
(Loss) income from continuing operations before income taxes and minority interests | (107,110 | ) | 15,237 | 60,365 | 129,649 | 45,345 | 70,340 | ||||||||||||||
Provision for income taxes | 224 | 556 | (10,604 | ) | (21,246 | ) | (10,430 | ) | (10,026 | ) | |||||||||||
Minority interests net of tax | | | | 588 | 600 | 252 | |||||||||||||||
Net (loss) income | $ | (106,886 | ) | $ | 15,793 | $ | 49,761 | $ | 108,991 | $ | 35,515 | $ | 60,566 | ||||||||
(Loss) earnings per share, basic and diluted | $ | (145.19 | ) | $ | 21.45 | $ | 0.64 | $ | 1.38 | $ | 0.45 | $ | 0.71 | ||||||||
Weighted average shares outstanding, basic and diluted | 736,203 | 736,203 | 78,236,957 | 78,992,513 | 78,236,957 | 85,036,957 |
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AerCap Holdings N.V. |
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As of December 31, 2006 (adjusted)(1) |
As of March 31, 2007(1) |
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(US dollars in thousands) |
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Consolidated Balance Sheet Data: | ||||||
Assets |
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Cash and cash equivalents | $ | 131,201 | $ | 140,103 | ||
Restricted cash | 112,277 | 99,459 | ||||
Flight equipment held for operating leases, net | 2,966,779 | 3,074,519 | ||||
Notes receivable, net of provisions | 167,451 | 166,344 | ||||
Prepayments on flight equipment | 166,630 | 150,621 | ||||
Other assets | 373,698 | 395,385 | ||||
Total assets | $ | 3,918,036 | $ | 4,026,431 | ||
Debt | 2,555,139 | 2,665,987 | ||||
Other liabilities | 611,893 | 546,428 | ||||
Shareholders' equity | 751,004 | 814,016 | ||||
Total liabilities and shareholders' equity | $ | 3,918,036 | $ | 4,026,431 | ||
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of accounting for certain future maintenance payments. As a result of the FSP, our previous method of accruing for the payment of top-up or lessor maintenance contribution obligations at the signing of a lease is no longer permitted. Accordingly, we have adjusted our historical financial statements in accordance with Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 154 "Accounting Changes and Error Corrections" ("FAS 154") to reflect the application of the new policy for top-up and lessor maintenance contribution obligations. The effect of the adjustments on net income and retained earnings was $(1,524) and $42,004 for the year ended December 31, 2004; $(17,907) and $24,097 for the six months ended June 30, 2005; $98 and $98 for the six months ended December 31, 2005; $1,144 and $1,242 for the three months ended March 31, 2006; $20,995 and $21,093 for the year ended December 31, 2006; and $8,514 and $29,607 for the three months ended March 31, 2007. See Note 1 to our audited consolidated financial statements contained in this prospectus.
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SUMMARY UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED PRO FORMA FINANCIAL INFORMATION
The following summary unaudited consolidated pro forma income statement for the year ended December 31, 2006 has been derived by the application of pro forma adjustments to AerCap Holdings N.V.'s audited consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2006 which are included in this prospectus and AeroTurbine's audited consolidated financial statements for the period from January 1, 2006 to April 25, 2006 which are not included in this prospectus.
The summary unaudited consolidated pro forma income statement for the year ended December 31, 2006 gives effect to the AeroTurbine Acquisition and related conforming accounting changes as if they had occurred on January 1, 2006. On April 26, 2006, we acquired all of the existing share capital of AeroTurbine.
The summary unaudited consolidated pro forma financial information is based on assumptions and preliminary data and reflects adjustments described under "Unaudited Consolidated Pro Forma Financial Information" and the accompanying notes. The summary unaudited consolidated pro forma financial information is being furnished solely for informational purposes and is not intended to represent or be indicative of the results that we would have reported if the transaction identified above had occurred on the date indicated, nor does it purport to represent the results of operations we will obtain in future periods. The summary unaudited consolidated pro forma financial information should be read in conjunction with AerCap Holdings N.V.'s audited consolidated financial statements and related notes included in this prospectus.
For additional information regarding our summary unaudited consolidated pro forma financial information, see "Unaudited Consolidated Pro Forma Financial Information".
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Summary Unaudited Consolidated Pro Forma Financial Information
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Year ended December 31, 2006 |
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(US dollars in thousands, except per share amounts) |
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Consolidated Income Statement Data: | ||||
Revenues | ||||
Lease revenue | $ | 456,641 | ||
Sales revenue | 342,543 | |||
Management fee revenue | 14,072 | |||
Interest revenue | 34,686 | |||
Other revenue | 20,392 | |||
Total revenues | 868,334 | |||
Expenses | ||||
Depreciation | 105,166 | |||
Cost of goods sold | 254,734 | |||
Interest on debt | 171,384 | |||
Operating lease in costs | 25,232 | |||
Leasing expenses | 25,130 | |||
Provision for doubtful notes and accounts receivable | (186 | ) | ||
Selling, general and administrative expenses(1) | 157,074 | |||
Total expenses | 738,534 | |||
Income from continuing operations before income taxes and minority interests | 129,800 | |||
Provision for income taxes | (21,304 | ) | ||
Minority interests net of taxes | 588 | |||
Net income | $ | 109,084 | ||
Net income per share (basic/diluted) | $ | 1.38 | ||
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An investment in our ordinary shares involves a high degree of risk. You should carefully consider the risks described below before making an investment decision. Our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected by any of these risks. The trading price of our ordinary shares could decline due to any of these risks or other factors, and you may lose all of part or your investment. The risks described below are those that we currently believe may materially affect us. This prospectus also contains forward looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward looking statements as a result of certain factors, including the risks faced by us described below and elsewhere in this prospectus.
Risks Related to Our Business
Our business model depends on the continual re-leasing of our aircraft and engines when current leases expire, and we may not be able to do so on favorable terms, if at all.
Our business model depends on the continual re-leasing of our aircraft and engines when our current leases expire in order to generate sufficient revenues to finance our growth and operations and pay our debt service obligations. Between March 31, 2007 and December 31, 2009, aircraft leases accounting for approximately 43.2% of our lease revenues for the year ended December 31, 2006, are scheduled to expire and the aircraft subject to those leases will need to be re-leased or extended. In addition, nearly all of our engines are subject to short-term leases, which are generally less than 180 days. Our ability to re-lease our aircraft and engines will depend on general market and competitive conditions at the time the leases expire. The general market and competitive conditions may be affected by many factors which are outside of our control.
In 2006, we generated $22.9 million of revenues from leases that are scheduled to expire in 2007, $68.0 million of revenues from leases that are scheduled to expire in 2008 and $101.0 million of revenues from leases that are scheduled to expire in 2009. Since we lease most of our engines under short-term leases (90 to 180 days), we generally re-lease our engines at least once a year. If we are unable to re-lease an aircraft or engine on acceptable terms, our lease revenue may decline and we may need to sell the aircraft or engines at unfavorable prices to provide adequate funds for our debt service obligations and to otherwise finance our growth and operations.
Changes in interest rates may adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
We use floating rate debt to finance the acquisition of a significant portion of our aircraft and engines. All of our revolving credit facilities have floating interest rates. As of December 31, 2006 and March 31, 2007, we had $2.3 billion and $2.4 billion, respectively, of indebtedness outstanding that was floating rate debt. We incurred floating rate interest expense of $135.0 million and $37.7 million in 2006 and the three months ended March 31, 2007, respectively. If interest rates increase, we would be obligated to make higher interest payments to our lenders. Our practice has been to hedge the expected future interest payments on a portion of our floating-rate liabilities by entering into derivative contracts. However, we remain exposed to changes in interest rates to the extent that our hedges are not perfectly correlated to our financial liabilities. In addition, if we incur significant fixed rate debt in the future, increased interest rates prevailing in the market at the time of the incurrence or refinancing of such debt will also increase our interest expense.
Changes in interest rates may also adversely affect our lease revenues generated from leases with lease rates tied to floating interest rates. In 2006 and the three months ended March 31, 2007, 30.7% and 32.5%, respectively, of our lease revenue was attributable to leases tied to floating interest rates. Therefore, if interest rates were to decrease, our lease revenue would decrease. In addition, because our fixed rate leases are based, in part, on prevailing interest rates at the time we enter into the lease; if interest rates decrease, new leases we enter into will be at lower lease rates and our lease revenue
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will be adversely affected. As of December 31, 2006, if interest rates were to increase by 1%, we would expect to incur an increase in interest expense on our floating rate indebtedness of approximately $5.6 million on an annualized basis, excluding the offsetting benefits of interest rate hedges currently in effect, and, if interest rates were to decrease by 1%, we would expect to generate $11.0 million less lease revenue on an annualized basis.
The business of leasing, financing and sales of aircraft, engines and parts has historically experienced prolonged periods of oversupply during which lease rates and aircraft values have declined, and any future oversupply could materially and adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
In the past, the aircraft and engine leasing, buying and selling businesses have experienced prolonged periods of aircraft and engine oversupply. The oversupply of a specific type of aircraft or engine is likely to depress the lease rates for and the value of that type of aircraft or engine. The supply and demand for aircraft and engines is affected by various cyclical and non-cyclical factors that are outside of our control, including:
These factors may produce sharp and prolonged decreases in aircraft and engine lease rates and values, and have a material adverse effect on our ability to re-lease our aircraft and engines and/or sell our aircraft engines and parts at acceptable prices. Any of these factors could materially and adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
Our financial condition is dependent, in part, on the financial strength of our lessees; lessee defaults and other credit problems could adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
Our financial condition depends on the financial strength of our lessees, our ability to diligence and appropriately assess the credit risk of our lessees and the ability of lessees to perform under their leases. In 2006 and in the three months ended March 31, 2007, we generated 54.5% and 45.1%, respectively, of our revenues from leases to the airline industry, and as a result, we are indirectly affected by all the risks facing airlines today. The ability of our lessees to perform their obligations under our leases will depend primarily on the lessee's financial condition and cash flow, which may be affected by factors outside our control, including:
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Generally, airlines with high debt leverage are more likely than airlines with stronger balance sheets to seek operating leases. As a result, most of our existing lessees are not rated investment grade by the principal U.S. rating agencies and may suffer liquidity problems, and, at any point in time, may experience lease payment difficulties or be significantly in arrears in their obligations under our operating leases. Some lessees encountering financial difficulties may seek a reduction in their lease rates or other concessions, such as a decrease in their contribution toward maintenance obligations. Any future downturns in the airline industry could greatly exacerbate the weakened financial condition and liquidity problems of some of our lessees and further increase the risk of delayed, missed or reduced rental payments. We may not correctly assess the credit risk of each lessee or charge lease rates which correctly reflect the related risks and our lessees may not be able to continue to meet their financial and other obligations under our leases in the future. A delayed, missed or reduced rental payment from a lessee decreases our revenues and cash flow. Our default levels may increase over time if economic conditions deteriorate. If lessees of a significant number of our aircraft or engines default on their leases, our financial results and growth prospects will be adversely affected.
The value and lease rates of our aircraft and engines could decline and this would have a material adverse effect on our financial results and growth prospects.
Aircraft and engine values and lease rates have historically experienced sharp decreases due to a number of factors including, but not limited to, decreases in passenger and air cargo demand, increases in fuel costs, government regulation and increases in interest rates. In addition to factors linked to the aviation industry generally, many other factors may affect the value and lease rates of our aircraft and engines, including:
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Any decrease in the value and lease rates of aircraft or engines which may result from the above factors or other unanticipated factors, may have a material adverse effect on our financial results and growth prospects.
The concentration of some aircraft and engine models in our aircraft and engine portfolios could adversely affect our business and financial results should any problems specific to these particular models occur.
Due to the high concentration of Airbus A320 family aircraft and CFM International CFM56 family engines in our aircraft and engine portfolios, our financial results and growth prospects may be adversely affected if the demand for these aircraft or engine models declines, if they are redesigned or replaced by their manufacturer or if these aircraft or engine models experience design or technical problems. As of March 31, 2007, 85.4% of the net book value of our aircraft portfolio was represented by Airbus aircraft. Our owned aircraft portfolio included 14 aircraft types, the four highest concentrations of which together represented 81.9% of our aircraft by net book value. As of March 31, 2007, the four highest concentrations were Airbus A320 aircraft, representing 35.8% of the net book value of our aircraft portfolio, Airbus A321 aircraft, representing 23.3% of the net book value of our aircraft portfolio, Airbus A330 aircraft, representing 12.7% of the net book value of our aircraft portfolio and Airbus A319 aircraft, representing 10.1% of the net book value of our aircraft portfolio. No other aircraft type represented more than 10% of our portfolio by net book value. In addition to our significant number of existing Airbus aircraft, as of May 31, 2007, we had 74 new Airbus A320 family aircraft and 30 new Airbus A330-200 widebody aircraft on order from Airbus either directly or indirectly through our consolidated joint venture, AerVenture. We also have a significant concentration of CFM56 engines in our engine portfolio. As of March 31, 2007, 80.2% of the net book value of our engine portfolio was represented by CFM56 engines and 8.7% was represented by IAE engines.
Should any of these aircraft or engine types or aircraft manufactured by Airbus in general encounter technical or other problems, the value and lease rates of those aircraft or engines will likely decline, and we may be unable to lease the aircraft or engines on favorable terms, if at all. Any significant technical problems with any such aircraft or engine models could result in the grounding of the aircraft or engines.
In addition, if Airbus experiences further financial difficulty or if its restructuring plan is unsuccessful, we could be adversely affected. Airbus has announced that production delays on Airbus's A380 megajet are expected to reduce profits from 2007 to 2010 by $6 billion. Airbus has also announced that it will need to spend up to $13 billion to redesign its A350 aircraft and that the service entry of its A350 XWB aircraft would be delayed by approximately one year to 2013.
Any decrease in the value and lease rates of our aircraft and engines may have a material adverse effect on our financial results and growth prospects.
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If we are unable to successfully complete our integration of AeroTurbine, we may not be able to implement our business strategy.
We acquired AeroTurbine in April 2006. If we are unable to successfully complete the integration of AeroTurbine, a critical component of our business strategy which is focused on leveraging our ability to manage aircraft profitably throughout their lifecycle would be adversely affected. AeroTurbine's engine leasing business, airframe and engine disassembly business and its MRO capabilities are critical components of this strategy because we believe that these businesses and capabilities broaden our ability to extract value from a wide range of aircraft assets, particularly older aircraft, and to lower our maintenance costs. Our ability to successfully complete the integration of AeroTurbine will depend, in part, on the efforts of the former owners of AeroTurbine who are currently its Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer. If we are unable to successfully integrate AeroTurbine, we may acquire aircraft and engines that we may not be able to lease at attractive rates, if at all, or profitably disassemble for sale by our parts business. As a result, we may overpay for new aircraft or engines that we acquire. As we continue to integrate AeroTurbine, we may discover weaknesses or limitations in AeroTurbine's management information and accounting systems and internal controls. In addition, even if we are able to successfully complete the integration of AeroTurbine, we may be required to incur increased or unanticipated costs. If we are unable to complete the successful integration of AeroTurbine or if we experience increased costs in integrating AeroTurbine, we may not be able to implement our business strategy, our financial results and growth prospects may be materially and adversely affected, and we may fail to benefit from the synergies we expect to result from the AeroTurbine Acquisition.
We are indirectly subject to many of the economic and political risks associated with emerging markets, which could adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
A significant number of our aircraft and engines are leased to airlines in emerging market countries. As of March 31, 2007, we leased 51.9% of our aircraft and 31.1% of our engines, weighted by net book value, to airlines in emerging market countries. The emerging markets in which our aircraft are operated include Thailand, India, Brazil, Hungary, Turkey, Indonesia, El Salvador, Mexico, Jamaica, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Malaysia, Russia and Colombia and we may lease aircraft and engines to airlines in other emerging market countries in the future.
Emerging market countries have less developed economies that are more vulnerable to economic and political problems and may experience significant fluctuations in gross domestic product, interest rates and currency exchange rates, as well as civil disturbances, government instability, nationalization and expropriation of private assets and the imposition of taxes or other charges by government authorities. The occurrence of any of these events in markets served by our lessees and the resulting economic instability that may arise could adversely affect the value of our ownership interest in aircraft or engines subject to lease in such countries, or the ability of our lessees which operate in these markets to meet their lease obligations. As a result, lessees which operate in emerging market countries may be more likely to default than lessees that operate in developed countries. In addition, legal systems in emerging market countries may be less developed, which could make it more difficult for us to enforce our legal rights in such countries. For these and other reasons, our financial results and growth prospects may be materially and adversely affected by adverse economic and political developments in emerging market countries.
If our lessees encounter financial difficulties and we decide to restructure our leases, the restructuring would likely result in less favorable leases which could adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
If a lessee is late in making payments, fails to make payments in full or in part under a lease or has advised us that it will fail to make payments in full or in part under a lease in the future, we may
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elect or be required to restructure the lease, which could result in less favorable terms or termination of a lease without receiving all or any of the past due amounts. We may be unable to agree upon acceptable terms for some or all of the requested restructurings and as a result may be forced to exercise our remedies under those leases. If we, in the exercise of our remedies, repossess an aircraft or engine, we may not be able to re-lease the aircraft or engine promptly at favorable rates, if at all. You should expect that restructurings and/or repossessions with some lessees will occur in the future. The terms and conditions of possible lease restructurings may result in a significant reduction of lease revenue, which may adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
If we or our lessees fail to maintain our aircraft or engines, their value may decline and we may not be able to lease or re lease our aircraft and engines at favorable rates, if at all, which would adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
We may be exposed to increased maintenance costs for our leased aircraft and engines associated with a lessee's failure to properly maintain the aircraft or engine or pay supplemental maintenance rent. If an aircraft or engine is not properly maintained, its market value may decline which would result in lower revenues from its lease or sale. Under our leases, our lessees are primarily responsible for maintaining the aircraft and engines and complying with all governmental requirements applicable to the lessee and the aircraft and engines, including operational, maintenance, government agency oversight, registration requirements and airworthiness directives. Although we require many of our lessees to pay us a supplemental maintenance rent, failure of a lessee to perform required maintenance during the term of a lease could result in a decrease in value of an aircraft or engine, an inability to re lease an aircraft or engine at favorable rates, if at all, or a potential grounding of an aircraft or engine. Maintenance failures by a lessee would also likely require us to incur maintenance and modification costs upon the termination of the applicable lease, which could be substantial, to restore the aircraft or engine to an acceptable condition prior to sale or re-leasing. Supplemental maintenance rent paid by our lessees may not be sufficient to fund our maintenance costs. Our lessees' failure to meet their obligations to pay supplemental maintenance rent or perform required scheduled maintenance or our inability to maintain our aircraft or engines may materially and adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
Competition from other aircraft or engine lessors with greater resources or a lower cost of capital than us could adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
The aircraft and engine leasing industry is highly competitive. Our competition is comprised of major aircraft leasing companies including GE Commercial Aviation Services, International Lease Finance Corp., CIT Aerospace, Aviation Capital Group, Pegasus Aviation, RBS Aviation Capital, AWAS, Babcock & Brown, Boeing Capital Corp., Macquarie Air Finance and AirCastle Advisors, and six major engine leasing companies, including GE Engine Leasing, Engine Lease Finance Corporation, Pratt & Whitney Engine Leasing LLC, Willis Lease Finance Corporation, Rolls Royce and Partners Finance and Shannon Engine Support Ltd. Some of our competitors are significantly larger and have greater resources or lower cost of capital than us; accordingly, they may be able to compete more effectively in one or more of our markets. In addition, GE Commercial Aviation Services, through its acquisition of the Memphis Group, Inc., an aircraft parts trading company, in late 2006, is able to operate with an integrated business model similar to our own, and therefore directly compete with each aspect of our business.
In addition, we may encounter competition from other entities such as:
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Some of these competitors have greater operating and financial resources and access to lower capital costs than us. We may not always be able to compete successfully with such competitors and other entities, which could materially and adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
We are exposed to significant regional political and economic risks due to the concentration of our lessees in certain geographical regions which could adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
Through our lessees, we are exposed to local economic and political conditions. Such adverse economic and political conditions include additional regulation or, in extreme cases, requisition of our aircraft or engines. The effect of these conditions on payments to us will be more or less pronounced, depending on the concentration of lessees in the region with adverse conditions. The airline industry is highly sensitive to general economic conditions. A recession or other worsening of economic conditions or a terrorist attack, particularly if combined with high fuel prices or a weak Euro or other local currency, may have a material adverse effect on the ability of our lessees to meet their financial and other obligations under our leases.
Lease rental revenues from lessees based in Asia accounted for 43.5% of our lease revenues in 2006. The outbreak of SARS in 2003 had a significant negative effect on the Asian economy, particularly in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. The Asian airline industry has since recovered and is currently experiencing strong growth; however, a recurrence of SARS or the outbreak of another epidemic disease, such as avian influenza, which many experts believe would originate in Asia, could materially and adversely affect the Asian airline industry.
Lease rental revenues from lessees based in Europe accounted for 34.9% of our lease revenues in 2006. Commercial airlines in Europe face, and can be expected to continue to face, increased competitive pressures, in part as a result of the deregulation of the airline industry by the European Union and the resulting expansion of low-cost carriers. European countries generally have relatively strict environmental regulations and traffic constraints that can restrict operational flexibility and decrease aircraft productivity, which could significantly increase operating costs of all aircraft, including our aircraft, thereby adversely affecting our lessees.
Lease rental revenues from lessees based in North America, including Mexico, accounted for 12.8% of our lease revenues in 2006. During the past 15 years, a number of North American passenger airlines filed for bankruptcy and several major U.S. airlines ceased operations altogether. The outbreak of SARS, the war and prolonged conflict in Iraq and the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States have imposed additional financial burdens on most U.S. airlines as a result of increased expenses due to tightened security requirements and in certain cases have led to a temporary reduction in demand for air travel.
Lease rental revenues from lessees based in Latin America account for 6.6% of our lease revenues in 2006. The economies of Latin American countries are generally characterized by lower levels of foreign investment and greater economic volatility when compared to industrialized countries. Lease rental revenues from lessees based in the Caribbean accounted for 2.2% of our lease revenues in 2006. Any economic downturn in the Latin American or the Caribbean economies may adversely affect the operations of our lessees in these regions.
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Our substantial indebtedness incurred to acquire our aircraft and engines requires significant debt service payments.
As of March 31, 2007, our consolidated indebtedness was $2.7 billion and our interest expense (including the impact of hedging activities) was $166.2 million and $50.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2006 and the three months ended March 31, 2007, respectively. Due to the capital intensive nature of our business and our strategy of expanding our aircraft and engine portfolios, we expect that we will incur additional indebtedness in the future and continue to maintain high levels of indebtedness. As of May 31, 2007, we had 74 new A320 family aircraft and 30 new A330-200 widebody aircraft on order from Airbus. If we acquire all 104 of the Airbus aircraft, over the next five years, we would expect to incur in excess of $4.5 billion of indebtedness to finance the purchase price of the aircraft. High levels of indebtedness may limit our cash flow available for capital expenditures, acquisitions and other general corporate purposes and may have a material adverse effect on our earnings and growth prospects.
In addition, covenants in some of the indebtedness incurred by our subsidiaries prevent our subsidiaries from paying dividends to us if we or the relevant subsidiary do not meet specified financial ratios. In addition, the terms of the Aircraft Lease Securitisation indebtedness allow for distributions on the subordinated notes held by us only after the senior class of notes is redeemed.
Aircraft have limited economically useful lives and depreciate over time, which can adversely affect our financial condition and growth prospects.
As our aircraft age, they will depreciate and generally the aircraft will generate lower revenues and cash flows. If we do not replace our older depreciated aircraft with newer aircraft, our ability to maintain or increase our revenues and cash flows will decline. In addition, since we depreciate our aircraft for accounting purposes on a straight line basis to the aircraft's estimated residual value over its estimated useful life, if we dispose of an aircraft for a price that is less than the depreciated book value of the aircraft on our balance sheet, we will recognize a loss on the sale.
Our failure to maintain effective internal controls could have a material adverse effect on our business in the future and on our access to the capital markets.
Although we were not subject to the requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002 prior to 2007, we have begun documenting and testing our internal controls in order to enable us to satisfy those requirements as of December 31, 2007. At the end of this year, in accordance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes Oxley Act, our management will be required to assess the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting, and we will be required to have our independent registered public accounting firm audit management's assessment on the operating effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. In the course of their audit of our consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2006, our auditors communicated to our audit committee recommendations for the improvement of our internal control systems. We are in the process of addressing those recommendations. If our management or our independent registered public accounting firm were to conclude that our internal control over financial reporting was not effective, including appropriate remediation of the internal control recommendations referred to above, investors could lose confidence in our reported financial information and the value of our ordinary shares could be adversely impacted. Our failure to achieve and maintain effective internal controls could have a material adverse effect on our business in the future and on our access to the capital markets.
In addition, in connection with our compliance with Section 404 and the other applicable provisions of the Sarbanes Oxley Act, our management and other personnel will need to devote a substantial amount of time, and may need to hire additional accounting and financial staff, to assure that we comply with these requirements. Compliance may also make some of our activities more time
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consuming and costly. The additional management attention and costs relating to compliance with the Sarbanes Oxley Act could materially and adversely affect our growth and financial results.
The advanced age of some of our aircraft may cause us to incur higher than anticipated maintenance expenses, which could adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
As of March 31, 2007, we owned 70 aircraft that were over ten years of age, representing 30.0% of the net book value of our aircraft portfolio. In general, the costs of operating an aircraft, including maintenance expenditures, increase as the aircraft ages. In addition, older aircraft are typically less fuel-efficient, noisier and produce higher levels of emissions, than newer aircraft and may be more difficult to re-lease or sell. In a depressed market, the value of older aircraft may decline more rapidly than the values of newer aircraft and our operating results may be adversely affected. Increased variable expenses like fuel, maintenance and increased governmental regulation could make the operation of older aircraft or engines less profitable and may result in increased lessee defaults. Incurring higher than anticipated maintenance expenses associated with the advanced age of some of our aircraft or our inability to sell or re-lease such older aircraft would materially and adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
The advent of superior aircraft and engine technology could cause our existing aircraft and engine portfolio to become outdated and therefore less desirable, which could adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
As manufacturers introduce technological innovations and new types of aircraft and engines, some of the aircraft and engines in our aircraft and engine portfolios may become less desirable to potential lessees. In addition, the imposition of increased regulation regarding stringent noise or emissions restrictions may make some of our aircraft and engines less desirable in the marketplace. Any of these risks may adversely affect our ability to lease or sell our aircraft or engines on favorable terms, if at all, which would have a material adverse effect on our financial results and growth prospects.
If our lessees' insurance coverage is insufficient, it could adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
While we do not directly control the operation of any of our aircraft or engines, by virtue of holding title to aircraft, directly or indirectly, in certain jurisdictions around the world, we could be held strictly liable for losses resulting from the operation of our aircraft and engines, or may be held liable for those losses on other legal theories. We require our lessees to obtain specified levels of insurance and indemnify us for, and insure against, liabilities arising out of their use and operation of the aircraft.
However, following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, aviation insurers significantly reduced the amount of insurance coverage available to airlines for liability to persons other than employees or passengers for claims resulting from acts of terrorism, war or similar events. At the same time, aviation insurers significantly increased the premiums for third party war risk and terrorism liability insurance and coverage in general. As a result, the amount of third party war risk and terrorism liability insurance that is commercially available at any time may be below the amount stipulated in our leases.
Our lessees' insurance or other coverage may not be sufficient to cover all claims that may be asserted against us arising from the operation of our aircraft and engines by our lessees. Inadequate insurance coverage or default by lessees in fulfilling their indemnification or insurance obligations will reduce the proceeds that would be received by us in the event we are sued and are required to make payments to claimants, which could materially and adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
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If we incur significant costs resulting from lease defaults it could adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
If we are required to repossess an aircraft or engine after a lessee default, we may be required to incur significant unexpected costs. Those costs include legal and other expenses of court or other governmental proceedings, including the cost of posting surety bonds or letters of credit necessary to effect repossession of the aircraft or engine, particularly if the lessee is contesting the proceedings or is in bankruptcy. In addition, during these proceedings the relevant aircraft or engine is not generating revenue. We may also incur substantial maintenance, refurbishment or repair costs that a defaulting lessee has failed to pay and that are necessary to put the aircraft or engine in suitable condition for re-lease or sale. It may also be necessary to pay off liens, taxes and other governmental charges on the aircraft to obtain clear possession and to remarket the aircraft effectively, including, in some cases, liens that the lessee may have incurred in connection with the operation of its other aircraft. We may also incur other costs in connection with the physical possession of the aircraft or engine.
We may also suffer other adverse consequences as a result of a lessee default and the related termination of the lease and the repossession of the related aircraft or engine. Our rights upon a lessee default vary significantly depending upon the jurisdiction and the applicable law, including the need to obtain a court order for repossession of the aircraft and/or consents for de-registration or re-export of the aircraft. When a defaulting lessee is in bankruptcy, protective administration, insolvency or similar proceedings, additional limitations may apply. Certain jurisdictions give rights to the trustee in bankruptcy or a similar officer to assume or reject the lease or to assign it to a third party, or entitle the lessee or another third party to retain possession of the aircraft or engine without paying lease rentals or performing all or some of the obligations under the relevant lease. In addition, certain of our lessees are owned in whole, or in part, by government related entities, which could complicate our efforts to repossess our aircraft or engines in that government's jurisdiction. Accordingly, we may be delayed in, or prevented from, enforcing certain of our rights under a lease and in re-leasing the affected aircraft or engine.
If we repossess an aircraft or engine, we will not necessarily be able to export or de-register and profitably redeploy the aircraft or engine. For instance, where a lessee or other operator flies only domestic routes in the jurisdiction in which the aircraft or engine is registered, repossession may be more difficult, especially if the jurisdiction permits the lessee or the other operator to resist de-registration. We may also incur significant costs in retrieving or recreating aircraft or engine records required for registration of the aircraft or engine, and in obtaining the certificate of airworthiness for an aircraft. If we incur significant costs repossessing our aircraft or engines, are delayed in repossessing our aircraft or engines or are unable to obtain possession of our aircraft or engines as a result of lessee defaults, our financial results and growth prospects may be materially and adversely affected.
If we provide MRO services to third parties, we may lose some of our existing MRO service provider customers who lease our engines and purchase our parts.
A significant portion of our short-term engine leases are to engine MRO service providers, which in turn use the engines to provide their customers with spare engines while the MRO service provider repairs the customer's engines. Also, a significant portion of our engine parts are sold directly to our engine MRO service provider customers. If we provide MRO services directly to third parties we would compete directly with some of our MRO service provider customers. Some of these MRO service provider customers may choose to lease engines and purchase parts from our competitors with whom they do not directly compete in their MRO business.
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If our lessees fail to appropriately discharge aircraft liens, we may be obligated to pay the aircraft liens, which could adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
In the normal course of their business, our lessees are likely to incur aircraft and engine liens that secure the payment of airport fees and taxes, custom duties, air navigation charges, including charges imposed by Eurocontrol, landing charges, crew wages, repairer's charges, salvage or other liens that may attach to our aircraft or engine. These liens may secure substantial sums that may, in certain jurisdictions or for certain types of liens, particularly liens on entire fleets of aircraft, exceed the value of the particular aircraft or engine to which the liens have attached. Aircraft and engines may also be subject to mechanical liens as a result of routine maintenance performed by third parties on behalf of our customers. Although the financial obligations relating to these liens are the responsibility of our lessees, if they fail to fulfill their obligations, the liens may attach to our aircraft or engines and ultimately become our responsibility. In some jurisdictions, aircraft and engine liens may give the holder thereof the right to detain or, in limited cases, sell or cause the forfeiture of the aircraft or engine.
Until they are discharged, these liens could impair our ability to repossess, re lease or sell our aircraft or engines. Our lessees may not comply with their obligations under their leases to discharge aircraft liens arising during the terms of their leases. If they do not, we may find it necessary to pay the claims secured by such aircraft liens in order to repossess the aircraft or engine. Such payments would materially and adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
Failure to obtain certain required licenses, certificates and approvals could adversely affect our ability to re-lease or sell aircraft and engines, our ability to perform maintenance services or to provide cash management services, which would materially and adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.
Under our leases, we may be required in some instances to obtain specific licenses, consents or approvals for different aspects of the leases. These required items include consents from governmental or regulatory authorities for certain payments under the leases and for the import, re-export or deregistration of the aircraft and engines. Subsequent changes in applicable law or administrative practice may increase such requirements. In addition, a governmental consent, once given, might be withdrawn. Furthermore, consents needed in connection with future re-leasing or sale of an aircraft or engine may not be forthcoming. To perform some of our cash management services and insurance services from Ireland under our management arrangements with our joint ventures and securitization entities, we require a license from the Irish regulatory authorities, which we have obtained. In addition, to meet our MRO customers' requirements to maintain certain flight certifications, AeroTurbine requires certificates from the Federal Aviation Administration, or FAA, and European Aviation Safety Agency, or EASA, which it has obtained. A failure to maintain these licenses or certificates or obtain any required license or certificate, consent or approval, or the occurrence of any of the foregoing events, could adversely affect our ability to provide qualifying services or re-lease or sell our aircraft or engines, which would materially and adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.
Our ability to operate in some countries is restricted by foreign regulations and controls on investments.
Many countries restrict or control foreign investments to varying degrees, and additional or different restrictions or policies adverse to us may be imposed in the future. These restrictions and controls have limited, and may in the future restrict or preclude, our investment in joint ventures or the acquisition of businesses outside of the United States, or may increase the cost to us of entering into such transactions. Various governments, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region, require governmental approval before foreign persons may make investments in domestic businesses and also limit the extent of any such investments. Furthermore, various governments may require governmental approval for the repatriation of capital by, or the payment of dividends to, foreign investors. Restrictive policies
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regarding foreign investments may increase our costs of pursuing growth opportunities in foreign jurisdictions, which could materially and adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
There are a limited number of aircraft and engine manufacturers and the failure of any manufacturer to meet its aircraft and engine delivery obligations to us could adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
The supply of commercial jet aircraft is dominated by two airframe manufacturers, Boeing and Airbus, and three engine manufacturers, GE Aircraft Engines, Rolls Royce plc and Pratt & Whitney. As a result, we are dependent on these manufacturers' success in remaining financially stable, producing products and related components which meet the airlines' demands and fulfilling their contractual obligations to us. In 2006, Airbus made a series of announcements relating to significant delays and cost overruns in the manufacturing process for the new commercial jet it is developing, the A380 megajet. These delays and cost overruns have resulted in several changes of Airbus's top management and led to some Airbus customers canceling existing orders, which aggravated Airbus's economic difficulties.
Further, competition between Airbus and Boeing for market share is escalating and may cause instances of deep discounting for certain aircraft types, which could adversely affect our ability to obtain an attractive price when we attempt to sell our aircraft in the aftermarket. Should the manufacturers fail to respond appropriately to changes in the market environment or fail to fulfill their contractual obligations, we may experience:
We will need additional capital to finance our growth, and we may not be able to obtain it on terms acceptable to us, if at all, which may limit our ability to grow and compete in the aircraft and engine leasing and trading markets.
We will need additional capital to continue to expand our business by acquiring additional aircraft, engines and other aviation assets, and financing may not be available to us or may be available to us only on terms that are not favorable. We initially finance the acquisition of aircraft through a combination of medium term revolving credit facilities and long term debt structures. Once we obtain a sufficient number and diversity of aircraft financed with medium term revolving credit facilities, we generally refinance these facilities with long term debt structures, including securitizations, tax advantaged structures and bank loans. As a result, we are subject to the risk that we will not be able to acquire, during the period that our credit facilities are available, a sufficient amount of eligible aircraft
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and engines to allow for an issuance of long-term debt. If we are unable to raise additional funds or obtain capital on terms acceptable to us, we may have to delay, modify or abandon some or all of our growth strategies. Further, if additional capital is raised through the issuance of additional equity securities, the percentage ownership of our then current shareholders would be diluted. Newly issued equity securities may have rights, preferences or privileges senior to those of our ordinary shares. See "Description of Ordinary Shares".
We are subject to various environmental regulations that may have an adverse impact on our financial results and growth prospects.
Governmental regulations regarding aircraft and engine noise and emissions levels apply based on where the relevant airframe is registered, and where the aircraft is operated. For example, jurisdictions throughout the world have adopted noise regulations which require all aircraft to comply with noise level standards. In addition to the current requirements, the United States and the International Civil Aviation Organization, or ICAO, have adopted a new, more stringent set of standards for noise levels which will apply to engines manufactured or certified beginning in 2006. Currently, United States regulations would not require any phase-out of aircraft that qualify with the current standards, but the European Union has established a framework for the imposition of operating limitations on aircraft that do not comply with the new standards. These regulations could limit the economic life of our aircraft and engines, reduce their value, limit our ability to lease or sell the non-compliant aircraft and engines or, if engine modifications are permitted, require us to make significant additional investments in the aircraft and engines to make them compliant.
In addition to more stringent noise restrictions, the United States and other jurisdictions are beginning to impose more stringent limits on the emission of nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide emissions from engines. Though current emissions control laws generally apply to newer engines, new laws could be passed in the future that also impose limits on older engines, and therefore any new engines we purchase, as well as our older engines, could be subject to existing or new emissions limitations. Limitations on emissions could favor the use of larger wide-body aircraft since they generally produce lower levels of emissions per passenger, which could adversely affect our ability to re-lease or otherwise dispose of our narrow-body aircraft on a timely basis, at favorable terms, or at all. This is an area of law that is rapidly changing, and while we do not know at this time whether new emission control laws will be passed, and if passed what impact such laws might have on our business, any future emissions limitations could adversely affect us.
Our operations are subject to various federal, state and local environmental, health and safety laws and regulations in the United States, including those relating to the discharge of materials into the air, water and ground, the generation, storage, handling, use, transportation and disposal of hazardous materials, and the health and safety of its employees. A violation of these laws and regulations or permit conditions can result in substantial fines, permit revocation or other damages. Many of these laws impose liability for clean up of contamination that may exist at our facilities (even if we did not know of or were not responsible for the contamination) or related personal injuries or natural resource damages or costs relating to contamination at third party waste disposal sites where we have sent or may send waste. We cannot assure you that we will be at all times in complete compliance with these laws, regulations or permits. We may have liability under environmental laws or be subject to legal actions brought by governmental authorities or other parties for actual or alleged violations of, or liability under, environmental, health and safety laws, regulations or permits.
We are the manager for several securitization vehicles and joint ventures and our financial results would be adversely affected if we were removed from these positions.
We are the aircraft manager for various securitization vehicles, joint ventures and third parties and receive annual fees for these services. In 2006 and the three months ended March 31, 2007, we
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generated revenue of $14.1 million and $3.0 million respectively from providing aircraft management services to non-consolidated securitization vehicles and joint ventures and third parties. We may be removed as manager by the affirmative vote of a requisite number of holders of the securities issued by the securitization vehicles upon the occurrence of specified events and at specified times under our joint venture agreements. If we are removed, in the case of our consolidated securitization vehicles and joint ventures, our expenses would increase since such securitization vehicles or joint ventures would have to hire an outside aircraft manager and, in the case of non-consolidated securitization vehicles, joint ventures and third parties, our revenues would decline as a result of the loss of our fees for providing management services to such entities. If we are removed as aircraft manager for any securitization vehicle or joint venture that generates a significant portion of our management fees, our financial results and growth prospects could be materially and adversely affected.
Our limited control over our joint ventures may delay or prevent us from implementing our business strategy which may adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
We are currently joint venture partners in several joint ventures, including AerVenture, a consolidated joint venture which has entered into a purchase agreement with Airbus for the purchase of 70 A320 family aircraft, and it is our strategy to enter into additional joint ventures in the future. Under the AerVenture joint venture agreement, we share control over significant decisions with our joint venture partner. For example, we may not, without the consent of our AerVenture joint venture partner, cause AerVenture to incur any debt outside the ordinary course of business, buy or sell assets or pay dividends to us. Since we have limited control over AerVenture and certain of our other joint ventures and may not be able to exercise control over any future joint venture, we may not be able to require AerVenture or such other joint ventures to take actions that we believe are necessary to implement our business strategy. Accordingly, this limited control could have a material adverse effect on our financial results and growth prospects.
The departure of senior managers could adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
Our future success depends, to a significant extent, upon the continued service of our senior management personnel. For a description of the senior management team, see "Management". The departure of senior management personnel could have a material adverse effect on our ability to achieve our business strategy, including the integration of AeroTurbine.
In certain countries, an engine affixed to an aircraft may become an accession to the aircraft and we may not be able to exercise our ownership rights over the engine.
In some jurisdictions, an engine affixed to an aircraft may become an accession to the aircraft, so that the ownership rights of the owner of the aircraft supersede the ownership rights of the owner of the engine. If an aircraft is security for the owner's obligations to a third party, the security interest in the aircraft may supersede our rights as owner of the engine. This legal principle could limit our ability to repossess an engine in the event of an engine lease default while the aircraft with our engine installed remains in such jurisdiction. We would suffer a substantial loss if we were not able to repossess engines leased to lessees in these jurisdictions, which would materially and adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
Risks Related to the Aviation Industry
As high fuel prices continue to affect the profitability of the aviation industry, our lessees might not be able to meet their lease payment obligations, which would adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
Fuel costs represent a major expense to companies operating in the aviation industry. Fuel prices fluctuate widely depending primarily on international market conditions, geopolitical and environmental
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events and currency/exchange rates. As a result, fuel costs are not within the control of lessees and significant increases in fuel costs would materially and adversely affect their operating results.
Factors such as natural disasters can significantly affect fuel availability and prices. In August and September 2005, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita inflicted widespread damage along the Gulf Coast of the United States, causing significant disruptions to oil production, refinery operations and pipeline capacity in the region, and to oil production in the Gulf of Mexico. These disruptions resulted in decreased fuel availability and higher fuel prices.
Fuel prices currently remain at historically high levels. The continuing high cost of fuel has had, and sustained high costs in the future may continue to have, a material adverse affect on airlines' profitability, including our lessees. Due to the competitive nature of the aviation industry, operators have been and may continue to be unable to pass on increases in fuel prices to their customers by increasing fares in a manner that fully off-sets the increased fuel costs they have incurred. In addition, they may not be able to manage this risk by appropriately hedging their exposure to fuel price fluctuations. If fuel prices remain at historically high levels or increase further due to future terrorist attacks, acts of war, armed hostilities, natural disasters or for any other reason, they are likely to cause our lessees to incur higher costs and/or generate lower revenues, resulting in an adverse affect on their financial condition and liquidity. Consequently, these conditions may adversely affect our lessees' ability to make rental and other lease payments, result in lease restructurings and/or aircraft and engine repossessions, increase our costs of servicing and marketing our aircraft and engines, impair our ability to re-lease them or otherwise dispose of them on a timely basis at favorable rates or terms, if at all, and reduce the proceeds received for such assets upon any disposition. Any of these events could adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
If the effects of terrorist attacks and geopolitical conditions continue to adversely affect the financial condition of the airlines, our lessees might not be able to meet their lease payment obligations, which would adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
As a result of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States and subsequent terrorist attacks abroad, notably in the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Europe, increased security restrictions were implemented on air travel, costs for aircraft insurance and security measures have increased, passenger and cargo demand for air travel decreased and operators have faced and continue to face increased difficulties in acquiring war risk and other insurance at reasonable costs. In addition, war or armed hostilities, or the fear of such events could further exacerbate many of the problems experienced as a result of terrorist attacks. Uncertainty regarding the situation in Iraq and tension over Iran's and North Korea's nuclear programs may lead to further instability in the Middle East. Future terrorist attacks, war or armed hostilities, or the fear of such events, could further adversely affect the aviation industry and may have an adverse effect on the financial condition and liquidity of our lessees, aircraft and engine values and rental rates, and may lead to lease restructurings or repossessions, all of which could adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
Terrorist attacks and adverse geopolitical conditions have adversely affected the aviation industry and concerns about such events could also result in:
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Future terrorist attacks, acts of war or armed hostilities may cause certain aviation insurance to become available only at significantly increased premiums, which may be for reduced amounts of coverage that are insufficient to comply with the levels of insurance coverage currently required by aircraft and engine lenders and lessors or by applicable government regulations, or to be not available at all.
Although the Aircraft Transportation Safety and System Stabilization Act adopted in the United States on September 22, 2001 and similar programs instituted by the governments of other countries provide for limited government coverage under government programs for specified types of aviation insurance, these programs may not continue and governments may not pay under these programs in a timely fashion.
Future terrorist attacks, acts of war or armed hostilities are likely to cause our lessees to incur higher costs and to generate lower revenues, which could result in an adverse effect on their financial condition and liquidity. Consequently, these conditions may affect their ability to make rental and other lease payments to us or obtain the types and amounts of insurance required by the applicable leases, which may in turn lead to aircraft groundings, may result in additional lease restructurings and repossessions, may increase our cost of re-leasing or selling the aircraft and may impair our ability to re-lease or otherwise dispose of them on a timely basis at favorable rates or on favorable terms, if at all, and may reduce the proceeds received for our aircraft and engines upon any disposition. These results could adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
The effects of SARS or other epidemic diseases may adversely affect the airline industry in the future, which might cause our lessees to not be able to meet their lease payment obligations to us, which would adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
The linking of the 2003 outbreak of SARS to air travel materially and adversely affected passenger demand for air travel at that time. While the World Heath Organization's travel bans related to SARS were lifted, SARS had a continuing negative affect on the aviation industry, which was evidenced by a sharp reduction in passenger bookings and the cancellation of many flights after the air travel bans had been lifted. While these effects were felt most acutely in Asia, the effect of SARS on the aviation industry also adversely affected other areas, including North America.
Since 2003, there have been several outbreaks of avian influenza, beginning in Asia and, most recently, spreading to certain parts of Africa and Europe. Although human cases of avian influenza so far have been limited in number, the World Health Organization has expressed serious concern that a human influenza pandemic could develop from the avian influenza virus. In such an event, numerous responses, including travel restrictions, might be necessary to combat the spread of the disease. Additional outbreaks of SARS or other diseases, such as avian influenza, or the fear of such events, could adversely affect passenger demand for air travel and the aviation industry. These consequences could result in our lessees' inability to satisfy their lease payment obligations to us, which in turn would adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
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The passenger aviation industry is inherently cyclical and a significant downturn in the industry would adversely impact our lessees' ability to make payments to us, which would adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
The years 2001 through 2004 were characterized by falling air traffic demand and rising costs. This industry downturn was exacerbated by the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, prolonged military action in Iraq and Afghanistan, rising fuel prices, SARS and avian influenza. As a result, the global airline industry experienced significant financial losses. Many airlines, including some of our lessees, announced or implemented reductions in capacity, service and workforce. Additionally, many airlines sought protection under bankruptcy laws. The airline bankruptcies and the reduction in demand led to the grounding of significant numbers of aircraft and engines and the negotiation of reductions in lease rental rates, which depressed aircraft and engine market values.
While the down cycle has ended and many of the world's airlines are experiencing improved financial performance, an industry downturn is likely to occur again in the future and the impact could be similar to the impact of the prior downturn. Such a downturn would likely place already financially weakened lessees under further duress, once again putting downward pressure on lease rates. As in the previous downturn, the grounding of undesirable older aircraft would also play a role in depressing aircraft and engine market values.
Risks Related to Our Organization and Structure
If the ownership of our ordinary shares continues to be highly concentrated, it may prevent you and other minority shareholders from influencing significant corporate decisions and may result in conflicts of interest.
After giving effect to this offering, assuming that the underwriters' overallotment option is not exercised, companies controlled by funds and accounts affiliated with Cerberus, will own 45.8% of our ordinary shares. As a result, Cerberus may be able to effectively control fundamental corporate matters and transactions, including the appointment of a majority of our directors, mergers, amalgamations, consolidations or acquisitions, the sale of all or substantially all of our assets, the amendment of our articles of association and our dissolution. This concentration of ownership may delay, deter or prevent acts that would be favored by our other shareholders, such as a change of control transaction that would result in the payment of a premium to our other shareholders. In addition, this concentration of share ownership may adversely affect the trading price of our ordinary shares if the perception among investors exists that owning shares in a company with a significant shareholder is not desirable.
We are a Netherlands public limited liability company (naamloze vennootschap) and it may be difficult for you to obtain or enforce judgments against us or our executive officers, some of our directors and some of our named experts in the United States.
We were formed under the laws of The Netherlands and, as such, the rights of holders of our ordinary shares and the civil liability of our directors will be governed by the laws of The Netherlands and our articles of association. The rights of shareholders under the laws of The Netherlands may differ from the rights of shareholders of companies incorporated in other jurisdictions. Some of the named experts referred to in this prospectus are not residents of the United States, and most of our directors and our executive officers and most of our assets and the assets of our directors are located outside the United States. In addition, under our articles of association, all lawsuits against us and our directors and executive officers shall be governed by the laws of The Netherlands and must be brought exclusively before the Courts of Amsterdam, The Netherlands. As a result, you may not be able to serve process on us or on such persons in the United States or obtain or enforce judgments from U.S. courts against them or us based on the civil liability provisions of the securities laws of the United States. There is doubt as to whether courts of The Netherlands would enforce certain civil liabilities
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under U.S. securities laws in original actions and enforce claims for punitive damages. See "Enforcement of Civil Liabilities".
Under our articles of association, we indemnify and hold our directors, officers and employees harmless against all claims and suits brought against them, subject to limited exceptions. Under our articles of association, to the extent allowed by law, the rights and obligations among or between us, any of our current or former directors, officers and employees and any current or former shareholder shall be governed exclusively by the laws of The Netherlands and subject to the jurisdiction of The Netherlands courts, unless such rights or obligations do not relate to or arise out of their capacities listed above. Although there is doubt as to whether U.S. courts would enforce such provision in an action brought in the United States under U.S. securities laws, such provision could make enforcing judgments obtained outside of The Netherlands more difficult to enforce against our assets in The Netherlands or jurisdictions that would apply Netherlands law.
Our international operations expose us to economic and legal risks associated with a global business.
We conduct our business in many countries, and we anticipate that revenue from our international operations, particularly from the Asia-Pacific region, will continue to account for a significant amount of our future revenue. There are risks inherent in conducting our business internationally, including:
These factors may have a material adverse effect on our financial results and growth prospects.
If our subsidiaries do not make distributions to us we will not be able to pay dividends.
Substantially all of our assets are held by and our revenues are generated by our subsidiaries. We will be limited in our ability to pay dividends unless we receive dividends or other cash flow from our subsidiaries. Substantially all of our owned aircraft are held through special purpose subsidiaries or finance structures which borrow funds to finance or refinance the aircraft. The terms of such financings place restrictions on distributions of funds to us. If these limitations prevent distributions to us or our subsidiaries do not generate positive cash flows, we will be limited in our ability to pay dividends and may be unable to transfer funds between subsidiaries if required to support our subsidiaries.
Risks Related to This Offering
The market price and trading volume of our ordinary shares may be volatile, which could result in rapid and substantial losses for our shareholders.
The market price of our ordinary shares may be highly volatile and could be subject to wide fluctuations. In addition, the trading volume in our ordinary shares may fluctuate and cause significant price variations to occur. If the market price of our ordinary shares declines significantly, you may be unable to resell your ordinary shares at or above your purchase price, if at all. Some of the factors that could negatively affect our ordinary share price or result in fluctuations in the price or trading volume of our ordinary shares include:
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our accrued maintenance liability and changes in interest rates that can affect the value of derivatives which we mark to market;
In addition, the stock market has experienced extreme price and volume fluctuations that have often been unrelated or disproportionate to changes in the operating performance of listed companies. Broad market and industry factors may significantly affect the market price of companies' ordinary shares, including ours, regardless of actual operating performance. These fluctuations may be even more pronounced in the trading market for our ordinary shares shortly following this offering. In addition, in the past, following periods of volatility in the overall market and the market price of a particular company's securities, securities class action litigation has often been instituted against these companies. This litigation, if instituted against us, could result in substantial costs and a diversion of our management's attention and resources.
Future sales of ordinary shares by existing shareholders could cause our ordinary share price to decline which could adversely affect our ability to fund our growth and operations.
If our existing shareholders sell, or indicate an intention to sell, substantial amounts of our ordinary shares in the public market after the lock-up, and other legal restrictions on resale discussed in this prospectus no longer apply, the trading price of our ordinary shares could decline. We currently have and upon completion of this offering will continue to have a total of 85.0 million ordinary shares outstanding. Upon completion of this offering, 46.1 million of our ordinary shares will be freely tradable, without restriction, in the public market, assuming that the underwriters do not exercise their overallotment option.
The underwriters of this offering may, in their sole discretion, permit our officers, directors, and other current shareholders who are subject to the contractual lock-up to sell ordinary shares prior to the expiration of the lock-up agreements.
We expect that the lock-up agreements pertaining to this offering will expire 90 days from the date of this prospectus, although those lock-up agreements may be extended for up to an additional 18 days under certain circumstances. After the lock-up agreements expire, up to an additional 38.9 million ordinary shares will be eligible for sale in the public market. All of these ordinary shares are held by affiliates and will be subject to volume limitations under Rule 144 under the Securities Act. If these additional ordinary shares are sold, or if it is perceived that they will be sold, in the public market, the trading price of our ordinary shares could decline.
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Risks Related to Taxation
We may become a passive foreign investment company, or PFIC, for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
We do not believe we will be classified as a PFIC for the current year. The determination as to whether a foreign corporation is a PFIC is a complex determination based on all of the relevant facts and circumstances and depends on the classification of various assets and income under PFIC rules. In our case, the determination is further complicated by the application of the PFIC rules to leasing companies and to joint ventures and financing structures common in the aircraft leasing industry. It is unclear how some of these rules apply to us. Further, this determination must be tested annually and our circumstances may change in any given year. We do not intend to make decisions regarding the purchase and sale of aircraft with the specific purpose of reducing the likelihood of our becoming a PFIC. Accordingly, our business plan may result in our engaging in activities that could cause us to become a PFIC. If we are or become a PFIC, U.S. shareholders may be subject to increased U.S. federal income taxes on a sale or other disposition of our ordinary shares and on the receipt of certain distributions and will be subject to increased U.S. federal income tax reporting requirements. See "Tax ConsiderationsU.S. Tax Considerations" for a more detailed discussion of the consequences to you if we are treated as a PFIC and a discussion of certain elections that may be available to mitigate the effects of that treatment. We urge you to consult your own tax advisors regarding the application of the PFIC rules to your particular circumstances.
We may become subject to income or other taxes in jurisdictions which would adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects.
We and our subsidiaries are subject to the income tax laws of Ireland, The Netherlands, Sweden and the United States and other jurisdictions in which our subsidiaries are incorporated or based. In addition, we or our subsidiaries may be subject to additional income or other taxes in these and other jurisdictions by reason of the management and control of our subsidiaries, our activities and operations, where our aircraft operate or where the lessees of our aircraft (or others in possession of our aircraft) are located. Although we have adopted guidelines and operating procedures to ensure our subsidiaries are appropriately managed and controlled to reduce the exposure to such additional taxation, we may be subject to such taxes in the future and such taxes may be substantial. The imposition of such taxes could have a material adverse effect on our financial results and growth prospects.
We may incur current tax liabilities in our primary operating jurisdictions in the future.
We expect to make current tax payments in some of the jurisdictions where we do business in the normal course of our operations. Our ability to defer the payment of some level of income taxes to future periods is dependent upon the continued benefit of accelerated tax depreciation on our flight equipment in some jurisdictions, the continued deductibility of external and intercompany financing arrangements and the application of tax losses prior to their expiration in certain tax jurisdictions, among other factors. The level of current tax payments we make in any of our primary operating jurisdictions could adversely affect our cash flows and have a material adverse effect on our financial results and growth prospects.
We may become subject to additional Irish taxes based on the extent of our operations carried on in Ireland.
Our Irish tax resident subsidiaries are currently subject to Irish corporate income tax on trading income at a rate of 12.5%, on capital gains at 20%, and on other income at 25%. We expect that substantially all of our Irish income in future periods will be treated as trading income for tax purposes. As of December 31, 2006, we had $355.7 million of Irish tax losses available to carry forward against our trading income. The continued application of the 12.5% tax rate to trading income generated in
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our Irish tax resident subsidiaries and the ability to carry forward Irish tax losses to shelter future taxable trading income depends in part on the extent and nature of activities carried on in Ireland both in the past and in the future. AerCap Ireland and its Irish tax resident subsidiaries intend to carry on their activities in Ireland so that the 12.5% rate of tax applicable to trading income will apply and that they will be entitled to shelter future income with tax losses that arose from the same trading activity. We may not continue to be entitled to apply our loss carryforwards against future taxable trading income in Ireland.
We may fail to qualify for benefits under one or more tax treaties.
We do not expect that our subsidiaries located outside of the United States will have any material U.S. federal income tax liability by reason of activities we carry out in the United States and the lease of assets to lessees that operate in the United States. However, this conclusion will depend, in part, on continued qualification for the benefits of income tax treaties between the United States and other countries in which we are subject to tax (particularly The Netherlands and Ireland). That in turn may depend on the nature and level of activities carried on by us and our subsidiaries in each jurisdiction, the identity of the owners of equity interests in subsidiaries that are not wholly-owned and the identities of the direct and indirect owners of our indebtedness and the debt of our subsidiaries.
The nature of our activities may be such that our subsidiaries may not continue to qualify for benefits under income tax treaties with the United States and that we may not otherwise qualify for treaty benefits. Failure to so qualify could result in the imposition of U.S. federal taxes which could have a material adverse effect on our financial results and growth prospects.
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SPECIAL NOTE ABOUT FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS
This prospectus includes forward looking statements, principally under the captions "Prospectus Summary", "Aircraft, Engine and Aviation Parts Industry", "Risk Factors", "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" and "Business". We have based these forward looking statements largely on our current beliefs, expectations of SH&E and projections about future events and financial trends affecting our business. Many important factors, in addition to those discussed in this prospectus, could cause our actual results to differ substantially from those anticipated in our forward looking statements, including, among other things:
The words "believe", "may", "will", "aim", "estimate", "continue", "anticipate", "intend", "expect" and similar words are intended to identify forward looking statements. Forward looking statements include information concerning our possible or assumed future results of operations, business strategies, financing plans, competitive position, industry environment, potential growth opportunities, the effects of future regulation and the effects of competition. Forward looking statements speak only as of the date they were made and we undertake no obligation to update publicly or to revise any forward looking statements after we distribute this prospectus because of new information, future events or other factors. In light of the risks and uncertainties described above, the forward looking events and circumstances described in this prospectus might not occur and are not guarantees of future performance.
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We will not receive any of the proceeds from the sale of our ordinary shares by the selling shareholders.
Our selling shareholders are directly owned by Bermuda holding companies, the Bermuda Parents, with identical share ownership and capital structures consisting solely of common shares. The Bermuda Parents do not own any other significant assets or conduct any other significant activities outside of their indirect investment in us and the value of the Bermuda Parents is derived exclusively with reference to our value.
We estimate that the net proceeds to the selling shareholders from the offering will be approximately $589.7 million assuming an offering price of $31.00 per ordinary share, the last reported sale price of our ordinary shares on the NYSE on July 19, 2007, and after deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses. We expect the net proceeds from the sale of the ordinary shares by the selling shareholders to be distributed to the Bermuda Parents and then to be distributed to holders of the common shares and vested options of the Bermuda Parents. Funds and accounts affiliated with Cerberus own 86.0% of the common shares of the Bermuda Parents and certain members of our senior management and of our Board of Directors and an employee of Cerberus identified under "Principal and Selling Shareholders" own 14.0% of the common shares of the Bermuda Parents.
If all vested options held by such persons are exercised, funds and accounts affiliated with Cerberus would own 82.8% of the common shares of the Bermuda Parents and certain members of our senior management and of our Board of Directors and an employee of Cerberus would own 17.2% of the common shares. Certain members of our senior management also own unvested options which are not reflected in the foregoing ownership percentages.
An affiliate of Lehman Brothers Inc. (the "Lehman Affiliate") has a 2.7% participation interest in certain funds affiliated with Cerberus and will receive 2.7% of the proceeds received by such funds in this offering. Based on the public offering price of $31.00 per share, the last reported sale price of our ordinary shares on the NYSE on July 19, 2007, the sale by the selling shareholders of the number of shares set forth on the cover of this prospectus and distribution of the proceeds of this offering as described above, the Lehman Affiliate will receive $13.3 million of the proceeds of this offering received by the selling shareholders if the underwriters do not exercise their overallotment option and $15.3 million from the proceeds of this offering if the underwriters exercise their overallotment option. See "Underwriting".
Based on an assumed public offering price of $31.00 per ordinary share, the last reported sale price of our ordinary shares on the NYSE on July 19, 2007, funds and accounts affiliated with Cerberus and certain members of our senior management and of our Board of Directors will receive $490.8 million and $96.1 million, respectively, from the proceeds of this offering if the underwriters do not exercise their overallotment option and $567.6 million and $108.1 million, respectively, from the proceeds of this offering if the underwriters exercise their overallotment option. See "Principal and Selling Shareholders" for more information regarding our ownership structure and our indirect shareholders.
A $1.00 increase (decrease) in the offering price of $31.00 per ordinary share, the last reported sale price of our ordinary shares on the NYSE on July 19, 2007, would increase (decrease) the net proceeds to the selling shareholders from this offering by $19.2 million, assuming the number of ordinary shares offered by the selling shareholders, as set forth on the cover page of this prospectus, remains the same and after deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by the selling shareholders.
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PRICE RANGE OF OUR ORDINARY SHARES
Our ordinary shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "AER". The following table sets forth the quarterly high and low intraday trading prices of our ordinary shares on the New York Stock Exchange for the periods indicated since the commencement of trading of our ordinary shares following the pricing of our initial public offering on November 21, 2006:
|
High |
Low |
|||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
(US Dollars) |
||||||
Year ended December 31, 2006 | |||||||
Fourth Quarter (from November 21, 2006) | $ | 25.10 | $ | 21.85 | |||
Year ending December 31, 2007 |
|||||||
First Quarter | 29.85 | 22.75 | |||||
Second Quarter | 32.80 | 28.49 | |||||
Third Quarter (through July 19, 2007) | 32.82 | 30.03 |
On July 19, 2007, the closing sale price of our ordinary shares as reported on the New York Stock Exchange was $31.00 per share. As of July 19, 2007, there were five record holders of our ordinary shares.
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To date, we have not declared or paid any dividends on our ordinary shares. We intend to retain any future earnings to fund working capital and our growth and do not expect to pay any dividend in the foreseeable future. The payment of dividends is subject to the discretion of our Board of Directors and the approval of our shareholders. While the financial statements included in this prospectus are prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP, under the laws of The Netherlands the amount of dividends we may declare is determined by our Board of Directors by reference to our accounts under Netherlands GAAP and subject to the availability of adequate equity.
In addition, to the extent we decide to pay dividends in the future, our ability to pay dividends will be subject to:
As a holding company, our ability to pay dividends depends primarily on the receipt of dividends and distributions from our subsidiaries. If we declare dividends, we expect to do so in U.S. dollars; however, we have the corporate authority to declare dividends in other currencies. Existing financing arrangements for our aircraft include provisions which limit distributions of cash to us from the subsidiaries through which our aircraft are owned.
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The following table sets forth our consolidated cash and cash equivalents, restricted cash and capitalization as of March 31, 2007. Since we will not receive any proceeds from the sale of our ordinary shares by the selling shareholders, our capitalization will not change as a result of this offering.
This table should be read in conjunction with "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" and our unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements and the accompanying notes that appear elsewhere in this prospectus.
|
As of March 31, 2007 |
|||
---|---|---|---|---|
|
(US dollars in thousands) |
|||
Cash and cash equivalents | $ | 140,103 | ||
Restricted cash | 99,459 | |||
Total cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash | $ | 239,562 | ||
ALS securitization debt(1)(2) | 818,466 | |||
ECA-guaranteed debt(1) | 570,632 | |||
Commercial bank debt(1) | 1,016,410 | |||
Other debt | 260,479 | |||
Total debt | 2,665,987 | |||
Minority interest | 31,685 | |||
Ordinary share capital, €0.01 par value (200,000,000 ordinary shares authorized, 85,036,957 ordinary shares issued and outstanding) | 699 | |||
Additional paid-in capital | 593,999 | |||
Retained earnings | 219,318 | |||
Total shareholders' equity | 814,016 | |||
Total capitalization | $ | 3,751,250 | ||
Recent Financing Transactions
On May 8, 2007, Aircraft Lease Securitisation completed a refinancing of its securitized notes with the issuance of $1.66 billion of AAA-rated class G-3 floating rate notes. The proceeds from the refinancing were used to redeem all of the outstanding Aircraft Lease Securitisation debt, other than the most junior class of notes, to repay other indebtedness owned by us, to refinance the indebtedness that had been incurred to purchase 24 previously acquired aircraft, and to finance the purchase of four additional new aircraft, increasing Aircraft Lease Securitisation's aircraft portfolio size to 70 aircraft. In connection with the Aircraft Lease Securitisation refinancing, as of May 31, 2007, we had repaid net $362.6 million of indebtedness under our UBS revolving credit facility and $165.8 million of commercial bank debt with the proceeds of the new securitization.
40
SELECTED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL DATA
The following tables present AerCap Holdings N.V.'s (the successor company) and AerCap B.V.'s (the predecessor company) selected consolidated financial data for each of the periods indicated, prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP. You should read this information in conjunction with AerCap Holdings N.V.'s audited consolidated financial statements and related notes and unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements and related notes included in this prospectus and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations".
AerCap Holdings N.V. was formed as a Netherlands public limited liability company ("naamloze vennootschap") on July 10, 2006 and acquired all of the assets and liabilities of AerCap Holdings C.V., a Netherlands limited partnership on October 27, 2006. There was no change in accounting basis as a result of this transaction. Since AerCap Holdings C.V. and AerCap Holdings N.V. are entities organized under common control, the historical consolidated financial statements of AerCap Holdings C.V. became the historical consolidated financial statements of AerCap Holdings N.V. AerCap Holdings C.V. was formed on June 27, 2005 for the purpose of acquiring all of the shares and certain liabilities of AerCap B.V., (formerly known as debis AirFinance B.V.), in connection with the 2005 Acquisition. The financial information presented as of December 31, 2005 and 2006 and for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2004 and 2006, and the six months ended June 30, 2005 and December 31, 2005, was derived from AerCap Holdings N.V.'s audited consolidated financial statements included in this prospectus. The financial information presented as of and for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2003 and 2002 was derived from AerCap B.V.'s unaudited consolidated financial statements. The financial information presented for the three months ended March 31, 2006 and as of and for the three months ended March 31, 2007 was derived from AerCap Holding N.V.'s unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements included in this prospectus. The financial information presented for the three months ended March 31, 2007 is not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2007.
41
Consolidated Income Statements Data
|
AerCap B.V. |
|||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Year ended December 31, |
Six months ended June 30, |
||||||||||
|
2002 (adjusted)(1)(2) |
2003 (adjusted)(1)(2) |
2004 (adjusted)(1) |
2005 (adjusted)(1) |
||||||||
|
(US dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts) |
|||||||||||
Revenues | ||||||||||||
Lease revenue | $ | 459,115 | $ | 343,045 | $ | 308,500 | $ | 162,155 | ||||
Sales revenue | 13,105 | 7,499 | 32,050 | 75,822 | ||||||||
Management fee revenue | 7,160 | 13,400 | 15,009 | 6,512 | ||||||||
Interest revenue | 28,468 | 22,432 | 21,641 | 13,130 | ||||||||
Other revenue | 1,826 | 84,568 | 13,667 | 3,459 | ||||||||
Total revenues | 509,674 | 470,944 | 390,867 | 261,078 | ||||||||
Expenses |
||||||||||||
Depreciation | 202,395 | 143,303 | 125,877 | 66,407 | ||||||||
Cost of goods sold | 11,012 | 6,657 | 18,992 | 57,632 | ||||||||
Interest on debt | 267,228 | 123,435 | 113,132 | 69,857 | ||||||||
Impairments(3) | 170,498 | 6,066 | 134,671 | | ||||||||
Other expenses | 64,608 | 64,010 | 68,856 | 32,386 | ||||||||
Selling, general and administrative expenses | 40,472 | 39,267 | 36,449 | 19,559 | ||||||||
Total expenses | 756,213 | 382,738 | 497,977 | 245,841 | ||||||||
(Loss) income from continuing operations before income taxes, minority interest and cumulative effect of change in accounting principle |
(246,539 |
) |
88,206 |
(107,110 |
) |
15,237 |
||||||
Provision for income taxes | 60,588 | (32,939 | ) | 224 | 556 | |||||||
Minority interest net of tax | | | | | ||||||||
Cumulative effect of change in accounting principle | (99,491 | ) | | | | |||||||
Net (loss) income | $ | (285,442 | ) | $ | 55,267 | $ | (106,886 | ) | $ | 15,793 | ||
(Loss) earnings per share, basic and diluted | $ | (387.72 | ) | $ | 75.07 | $ | (145.19 | ) | $ | 21.45 | ||
Weighted average shares outstanding, basic and diluted | 736,203 | 736,203 | 736,203 | 736,203 |
42
Consolidated Income Statements Data
|
AerCap Holdings N.V. |
||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
Three months ended March 31, |
||||||||||
|
Six months ended December 31, 2005 (adjusted)(1)(4) |
Year ended December 31, 2006 (adjusted)(1)(5) |
|||||||||||
|
2006(1) |
2007(1) |
|||||||||||
|
(US dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts) |
||||||||||||
Revenues | |||||||||||||
Lease revenue | $ | 173,568 | $ | 443,925 | $ | 87,941 | $ | 139,703 | |||||
Sales revenue | 12,489 | 301,405 | 33,215 | 148,885 | |||||||||
Management fee revenue | 7,674 | 14,072 | 3,681 | 3,025 | |||||||||
Interest revenue | 20,335 | 34,681 | 8,934 | 7,272 | |||||||||
Other revenue | 1,006 | 20,336 | 5,322 | 10,587 | |||||||||
Total revenues | 215,072 | 814,419 | 139,093 | 309,472 | |||||||||
Expenses |
|||||||||||||
Depreciation | 45,918 | 102,387 | 24,324 | 33,932 | |||||||||
Cost of goods sold | 10,574 | 220,277 | 20,502 | 118,003 | |||||||||
Interest on debt | 44,742 | 166,219 | 28,203 | 50,484 | |||||||||
Impairments(3) | | | | | |||||||||
Other expenses | 26,524 | 46,523 | 9,586 | 10,128 | |||||||||
Selling, general and administrative expenses(6) | 26,949 | 149,364 | 11,133 | 26,585 | |||||||||
Total expenses | 154,707 | 684,770 | 93,748 | 239,132 | |||||||||
Income from continuing operations before income taxes, minority interest and cumulative effect of change in accounting principle |
60,365 |
129,649 |
45,345 |
70,340 |
|||||||||
Provision for income taxes | (10,604 | ) | (21,246 | ) | (10,430 | ) | (10,026 | ) | |||||
Minority interest net of tax | | 588 | 600 | 252 | |||||||||
Cumulative effect of change in accounting principle | | | | | |||||||||
Net income | $ | 49,761 | $ | 108,991 | $ | 35,515 | $ | 60,566 | |||||
Earnings per share, basic and diluted | $ | 0.64 | $ | 1.38 | $ | 0.45 | $ | 0.71 | |||||
Weighted average shares outstanding, basic and diluted | 78,236,957 | 78,992,513 | 78,236,957 | 85,036,957 |
43
Consolidated Balance Sheet Data
|
AerCap B.V. |
||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
As of December 31, |
||||||||
|
2002 (adjusted)(1)(2) |
2003 (adjusted)(1) |
2004 (adjusted)(1) |
||||||
|
(US dollars in thousands) |
||||||||
Assets | |||||||||
Cash and cash equivalents | $ | 86,121 | $ | 131,268 | $ | 143,640 | |||
Restricted cash | 243,336 | 206,572 | 118,422 | ||||||
Flight equipment held for operating leases, net | 3,476,501 | 2,484,850 | 2,748,347 | ||||||
Notes receivable, net of provisions | 195,236 | 188,616 | 250,774 | ||||||
Prepayments on flight equipment | 157,198 | 160,624 | 135,202 | ||||||
Other assets | 337,214 | 294,310 | 207,769 | ||||||
Total assets | $ | 4,495,606 | $ | 3,466,240 | $ | 3,604,154 | |||
Debt | 3,571,178 | 2,763,666 | 3,115,492 | ||||||
Other liabilities | 803,608 | 526,486 | 419,643 | ||||||
Shareholders' equity | 120,820 | 176,088 | 69,019 | ||||||
Total liabilities and shareholders' equity | $ | 4,495,606 | $ | 3,466,240 | $ | 3,604,154 | |||
Consolidated Balance Sheet Data
|
AerCap Holdings N.V. |
||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
As of December 31, 2005 (adjusted)(1) |
As of December 31, 2006 (adjusted)(1) |
As of March 31, 2007(1) |
||||||
|
(US dollars in thousands) |
||||||||
Assets | |||||||||
Cash and cash equivalents | $ | 183,554 | $ | 131,201 | $ | 140,103 | |||
Restricted cash | 157,730 | 112,277 | 99,459 | ||||||
Flight equipment held for operating leases, net | 2,189,267 | 2,966,779 | 3,074,519 | ||||||
Notes receivable, net of provisions | 196,620 | 167,451 | 166,344 | ||||||
Prepayments on flight equipment | 115,657 | 166,630 | 150,621 | ||||||
Other assets | 218,371 | 373,698 | 395,385 | ||||||
Total assets | $ | 3,061,199 | $ | 3,918,036 | $ | 4,026,431 | |||
Debt | 2,172,995 | 2,555,139 | 2,665,987 | ||||||
Other liabilities | 468,443 | 611,893 | 546,428 | ||||||
Shareholders' equity | 419,761 | 751,004 | 814,016 | ||||||
Total liabilities and shareholders' equity | $ | 3,061,199 | $ | 3,918,036 | $ | 4,026,431 | |||
44
the new policy for top-up and lessor maintenance contribution obligations. The effect of the adjustments on net income and retained earnings was $(7,855) and $25,176 for the year ended December 31, 2002; $18,352 and $43,528 for the year ended December 31, 2003; $(1,524) and $42,004 for the year ended December 31, 2004; $(17,907) and $24,097 for the six months ended June 30, 2005; $98 and $98 for the six months ended December 31, 2005; $1,144 and $1,242 for the three months ended March 31, 2006; $20,995 and $21,093 for the year ended December 31, 2006; and $8,514 and $29,607 for the three months ended March 31, 2007. See Note 1 to our audited consolidated financial statements contained in this prospectus.
45
UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED PRO FORMA FINANCIAL INFORMATION
The following unaudited consolidated pro forma income statements for the year ended December 31, 2006 have been derived by the application of pro forma adjustments to AerCap Holdings N.V.'s audited consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2006 included in this prospectus and AeroTurbine's audited consolidated financial statements for the period from January 1, 2006 to April 25, 2006 which are not included in this prospectus.
The unaudited consolidated pro forma income statement for the year ended December 31, 2006 gives effect to the AeroTurbine Acquisition and related conforming accounting changes as if they had occurred on January 1, 2006. On April 26, 2006, we acquired all of the existing share capital of AeroTurbine.
The unaudited consolidated pro forma financial information is based on assumptions and reflects adjustments described in the accompanying notes. The unaudited consolidated pro forma financial information is being furnished solely for informational purposes and is not intended to represent or be indicative of the results that we would have reported if the transaction identified above had occurred on the date indicated, nor does it purport to represent the results of operations we will obtain in future periods. The unaudited consolidated pro forma financial information should be read in conjunction with AerCap Holdings N.V.'s audited consolidated financial statements and the related notes included in this prospectus.
46
Unaudited Consolidated Pro Forma Income StatementYear Ended December 31, 2006
|
AerCap Holdings N.V. |
AeroTurbine |
AeroTurbine Acquisition |
Conforming changes |
|
|||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Year ended December 31, 2006 Historic |
January 1- April 25, 2006 Historic |
January 1- April 25, 2006 Adjustments(1) |
Year ended December 31, 2006 Adjustments(2) |
Year ended December 31, 2006 Pro Forma |
|||||||||||
|
(US dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts) |
|||||||||||||||
Revenues | ||||||||||||||||
Lease revenue | $ | 443,925 | $ | 12,668 | $ | 48 | 1(a) | $ | | $ | 456,641 | |||||
Sales revenue | 301,405 | 41,138 | | | 342,543 | |||||||||||
Management fee revenue | 14,072 | | | | 14,072 | |||||||||||
Interest revenue | 34,681 | | | 5 | 2(a) | 34,686 | ||||||||||
Other revenue | 20,336 | | | 56 | 2(a) | 20,392 | ||||||||||
Total revenues | 814,419 | 53,806 | 48 | 61 | 868,334 | |||||||||||
Expenses | ||||||||||||||||
Depreciation | 102,387 | | | 2,779 | 2(b) | 105,166 | ||||||||||
Cost of goods sold | 220,277 | 36,970 | 3,388 | 1(b),(c),(e) | (5,901 | ) 2(b) | 254,734 | |||||||||
Interest on debt | 166,219 | | | 5,165 | 2(a) | 171,384 | ||||||||||
Operating lease in costs | 25,232 | | | | 25,232 | |||||||||||
Leasing expenses | 21,477 | | | 3,653 | 2(b) | 25,130 | ||||||||||
Provision for doubtful notes and accounts receivable | (186 | ) | | | | (186 | ) | |||||||||
Selling, general and administrative expenses(3) | 149,364 | 7,804 | 437 | 1(d) | (531 | ) 2(b) | 157,074 | |||||||||
Total expenses (income) | 684,770 | 44,774 | 3,825 | 5,165 | 738,534 | |||||||||||
Income (loss) from continuing operations before income taxes and other (expenses) income | 129,649 | 9,032 | (3,777 | ) | (5,104 | ) | 129,800 | |||||||||
Provision for income taxes | (21,246 | ) | | (58 | ) 1(g) | | (21,304 | ) | ||||||||
Other (expenses) income | | (2,569 | ) | (2,535 | ) 1(f) | 5,104 | 2(a) | | ||||||||
Minority interests net of taxes | 588 | | | | 588 | |||||||||||
Net income (loss) | $ | 108,991 | $ | 6,463 | $ | (6,370 | ) | $ | | $ | 109,084 | |||||
Earnings per share basic | $ | 1.38 | $ | | $ | | $ | | $ | 1.38 | ||||||
Weighted average shares outstanding | 78,992,513 | | | | 78,992,513 |
47
The pro forma adjustments relating to the AeroTurbine Acquisition included in the unaudited consolidated pro forma income statement are as follows:
1(a) | Adjusted to reflect four months of straight-line amortization ($0.1 million) of a lease deficiency of $0.7 million recognized on the date of the AeroTurbine Acquisition. The lease deficiency represents the present value of contracted lease revenues which are at below market rates for one of AeroTurbine's leases. The amortization period of five years is based on the remaining contractual lease term, including the renewal options that were determined at the time of the AeroTurbine Acquisition to be reasonably assured of being exercised. | |
1(b) | Adjusted to reflect four months of depreciation ($0.8 million) of the $35.8 million fair value adjustment of equipment held for operating lease. The fair value adjustments are depreciated over the remaining estimated useful lives of the underlying assets as of January 1, 2006. The depreciation periods range from four to 15 years, with a weighted average remaining life of 12.6 years. | |
1(c) | Adjusted to reflect four months ($0.8 million) of amortization of the $23.4 million of customer relationship intangible assets, and four months ($0.1 million) of straightline amortization of an FAA license and non-compete agreement. Amortization of the intangible assets related to customer relationships is based on the anticipated sales in the ten years after the AeroTurbine Acquisition of both parts and engines which benefit from such relationships. Approximately 7% of the sales benefiting from the customer relationships are expected to occur in the first year following the AeroTurbine Acquisition. Amortization of the acquired FAA certificate and license is straight-line over 15 years, the remaining estimated useful life of the engine type to which the repair station certificate and license relate. Amortization of the non-compete agreement is straight-line over six years, which is the sum of the terms of the employment agreements for the individuals to which the agreements relate and the term of the non-compete agreements. | |
1(d) | Adjusted to reflect four months ($0.4 million) of the $4.0 million fair value adjustment on AeroTurbine's property and equipment. The depreciation is recorded straight-line over the remaining estimated useful lives of the underlying assets as of January 1, 2006. The depreciation periods range from one to seven years, with a weighted average life of 3.5 years. | |
1(e) | Adjusted to reflect four months ($1.6 million) of amortization of the $13.6 million fair value adjustment to inventory. Based on our historical experience, approximately 52% will be sold in the first 12 months after the AeroTurbine Acquisition. | |
1(f) | Adjusted to reflect the financing of the AeroTurbine Acquisition. The adjustment for the four months reflects the subtraction of $2.7 million of interest expense and debt issuance cost amortization for four months on AeroTurbine's historical indebtedness prior to the AeroTurbine Acquisition; and pro forma inclusion of $4.7 million of interest expense and $0.5 million of debt issuance cost amortization for four months related to the $175.0 million financing incurred to fund the AeroTurbine Acquisition. Interest on the post AeroTurbine Acquisition debt was calculated using a three month LIBOR rate of 5.13% prevailing on the date of the AeroTurbine Acquisition plus a weighted average spread of 2.99%. If interest rates were one-eighth of one percentage point higher or lower, our pro forma interest expense would have increased or decreased, respectively, by approximately $0.1 million for the period from January 1, 2006 to April 25, 2006. | |
1(g) | Adjusted to reflect (i) the tax effect of AeroTurbine's income before tax of $6.5 million for the period from January 1, 2006 to April 25, 2006 ($2.5 million tax expense) as if AeroTurbine had been a taxable corporation for this period and (ii) the tax effect of the pro forma adjustments (a) through (f) above totaling a net loss effect of $6.3 million ($2.4 million tax benefit) for the period from January 1, 2006 to April 25, 2006. The determination of the tax effect on the above items was calculated using AeroTurbine's blended pro forma estimated U.S. federal and state tax rates of 38.58%. |
48
2. Unaudited Consolidated Pro Forma Income Statement AdjustmentsConforming Accounting Changes and Reclassifications
The following conforming accounting changes and reclassifications have been made to align the accounting policies and financial statement line items presented in our financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2006:
2(a) | Adjusted to reclassify AeroTurbine's interest expense, interest income and other income historically recorded net within other income (expenses) on its income statement to conform with the consolidated income statement presentation we have adopted for our 2006 consolidated financial statements. AeroTurbine historically recorded these items below income from continuing operations before income taxes. We have historically recorded these items separately in their respective line items (interest on debt, interest revenue and other revenue) and included in income from continuing operations before income taxes and minority interests or operating expenses. These reclassifications to the respective line items were based on the classification provided in AeroTurbine's consolidated income statement for the period from January 1 to April 25, 2006 and adjustment 1(f) to these pro forma financial statements. The following table summarizes the adjustments made to reclassify the amounts previously presented in other income (expenses) to their respective line item within our consolidated income statement presentation: |
Adjustments for the year ended December 31, 2006 |
Interest revenue |
Interest on debt |
Other revenue |
Other (expenses) income |
|||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
(US dollars in thousands) |
||||||||||||
Reclassify historical interest revenue for AeroTurbine to interest revenue | $ | 5 | $ | | $ | | $ | (5 | ) | ||||
Reclassify historical interest expense for AeroTurbine to interest on debt | | 2,630 | | 2,630 | |||||||||
Reclassify historical other income for AeroTurbine to other revenue | | | 56 | (56 | ) | ||||||||
Reclassify pro forma interest expense for AeroTurbine to interest on debt* | | 2,535 | | 2,535 | |||||||||
Total | $ | 5 | $ | 5,165 | $ | 56 | $ | 5,104 | |||||
49
2(b) | Adjusted to reclassify depreciation expenses in the cost of goods sold and selling, general and administrative expenses line items to the depreciation line item and to reclassify leasing expenses in the cost of goods sold line item to leasing expenses. AeroTurbine historically recorded depreciation of leased engines and leasing expenses associated with such engines and aircraft as part of cost of goods sold. In addition, AeroTurbine has recorded depreciation of property and equipment as selling, general and administrative expenses. The following table summarizes the adjustments made to reclassify the amounts to the line items described above: |
Adjustments for the year ended December 31, 2006 |
Depreciation |
Cost of goods sold |
Selling, general and administrative |
Leasing expenses |
||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
(US dollars in thousands) |
|||||||||||
Reclassify historical depreciation on leased engines for AeroTurbine | $ | 1,411 | $ | (1,411 | ) | $ | | $ | | |||
Reclassify historical leasing expenses for AeroTurbine | | (3,653 | ) | | 3,653 | |||||||
Reclassify pro forma depreciation of fair value adjustment on leased engines for AeroTurbine | 837 | (837 | ) | | | |||||||
Reclassify historical depreciation in selling, general and administrative expenses for AeroTurbine | 150 | | (150 | ) | | |||||||
Reclassify pro forma depreciation of fair value adjustment of property and equipment for AeroTurbine | 381 | | (381 | ) | | |||||||
Total | $ | 2,779 | $ | (5,901 | ) | $ | (531 | ) | $ | 3,653 | ||
3. | As a result of the expected redemption of the Bermuda Parent's ordinary shares and vested options held by certain members of our senior management and of our Board of Directors and an employee of Cerberus with the proceeds of this offering and assuming the underwriters do not exercise their overallotment option, an amount of approximately $2.9 million of share-based compensation charges will be accelerated and recognized at the time of the offering. Due to the non-recurring nature of this adjustment, no pro forma adjustment has been included. |
50
MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND
RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
You should read this discussion in conjunction with our audited and unaudited consolidated financial statements and the related notes included in this prospectus. Our financial statements are presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America, or U.S. GAAP. The discussion below contains forward looking statements that are based upon our current expectations and are subject to uncertainty and changes of circumstances. See "Risk Factors" and "Special Note About Forward Looking Statements".
Overview
We are an integrated global aviation company with a leading market position in aircraft and engine leasing, trading and parts sales. We also provide aircraft management services and perform aircraft and engine MRO services and aircraft disassemblies through our certified repair stations.
We operate our business on a global basis, providing aircraft, engines and parts to customers in every major geographical region. As of March 31, 2007, we owned 140 aircraft and 65 engines, managed 98 aircraft, had 95 new aircraft and three new engines on order, had entered into a purchase contract for two new aircraft and had executed letters of intent to purchase an additional six aircraft.
As of March 31, 2007, our owned and managed aircraft and engines were leased to 105 commercial airline and cargo operator customers in 46 countries and were managed from our offices in The Netherlands, Ireland and the United States. We expect to expand our leasing activity in Asia and in China in particular through our AerDragon joint venture with China Aviation Supplies Import & Export Group Corporation, which commenced operations in October 2006.
We have the infrastructure, expertise and resources to execute a large number of diverse aircraft and engine transactions in a variety of market conditions. Our teams of dedicated marketing and asset trading professionals have been successful in leasing and trading our aircraft and engine portfolios. From January 1, 2003 to March 31, 2007, we executed over 1,100 aircraft and engine transactions, including 283 aircraft leases, 275 engine leases, 158 aircraft purchase or sale transactions, 204 engine purchase or sale transactions and the disassembly of 54 aircraft and 139 engines. Between January 1, 2003 and March 31, 2007, our weighted average owned aircraft utilization rate was 98.6%.
Joint Ventures
We expect to conduct an increasing portion of our business in the future through joint ventures. Entering into joint venture arrangements allows us to:
AerVenture. In December 2005, we established AerVenture. In January 2006, LoadAir, a subsidiary of Al Fawares, an investment and construction company based in Kuwait City, purchased a 50% equity interest in AerVenture. We have invested $25.0 million in AerVenture and LoadAir has invested $25.0 million in AerVenture. We have each agreed to make additional equity contributions of up to $90.0 million. We consolidate AerVenture's financial results in our financial statements. We have developed AerVenture as a joint venture because this structure allows us to leverage our buying power to achieve more favorable aircraft acquisition terms. We have entered into exclusive agreements to
51
provide management and marketing services to AerVenture in return for aircraft management fees and specified incentive fees which are tied to the profitability of AerVenture. Payments under these agreements will not provide any additional revenues as a result of consolidation. Our management and marketing services agreement may not be terminated by AerVenture until 2014, other than for cause. Due to the size of its order of 70 A320 family aircraft from Airbus, we expect AerVenture to become an important growth driver of our business.
AerDragon. In May 2006, we signed a joint venture agreement with China Aviation Supplies Import & Export Group Corporation and affiliates of Calyon S.A. establishing AerDragon. AerDragon consists of two companies, Dragon Aviation Leasing Company, Limited, or Dragon Aviation, based in Beijing with a registered capital of $10.0 million and AerDragon Aviation Partners Limited, based in Ireland with a registered capital of $50.0 million. AerDragon is 50% owned by China Aviation and 25% owned by each of us and Calyon. Following receipt of the local Chinese approvals required for it to begin operations, AerDragon commenced operations in October 2006. We act as the exclusive aircraft manager for the joint venture. This contract may be terminated upon the earlier to occur of either July 1, 2009, or the occurrence of specified events, such as AerDragon developing the expertise to manage its own aircraft. In the future, one of the main sources of aircraft for AerDragon is likely to be the acquisition of aircraft through sale leaseback transactions with Chinese airlines. This joint venture enhances our presence in the increasingly important China market and will enhance our ability to lease and sell our aircraft and engines throughout the entire Asia-Pacific region. We do not consolidate AerDragon's financial results in our financial statements. AerDragon acquired its first aircraft, an Airbus A320 aircraft, from us in February 2007.
Annabel and Bella. In 2005, we signed a joint venture agreement with Deucalion Capital Limited, or Deucalion, to form the Annabel joint venture in which we hold a 25% equity interest. Annabel purchased a used Airbus A340 aircraft in 2005. The aircraft is on lease to Sri Lanka Airlines through 2008. In 2006, we signed a joint venture agreement with Deucalion to form the Bella joint venture in which we hold a 50% equity interest. Bella purchased two used Airbus A330-300 aircraft in April 2006, one of which is on lease through 2009 and one of which is on lease through 2013. We receive fee income for providing aircraft management services to both Annabel and Bella. We consolidate Bella's financial results in our financial statements but do not consolidate Annabel's financial results in our financial statements. We do not expect these joint ventures to acquire additional aircraft.
We use the equity method to account for joint ventures that we do not consolidate.
Factors Affecting our Results
Our results of operations have been affected by a variety of factors, primarily:
52
Factors Affecting the Comparability of Our Results
Our Acquisition by Cerberus
On June 30, 2005, AerCap Holdings C.V., a Netherlands partnership owned by Cerberus acquired all of AerCap B.V.'s (formerly known as debis AirFinance B.V.) shares and $1.8 billion of liabilities owed by AerCap B.V. to its prior shareholders. AerCap Holdings C.V. paid total consideration of $1.4 billion for AerCap B.V.; $370 million of the total consideration paid by AerCap Holdings C.V. was funded through equity contributions by Cerberus and $1.0 billion was funded through a term loan. The 2005 Acquisition resulted in a net decrease of $802.0 million of indebtedness on our balance sheetthe difference between the $1.8 billion of intercompany liabilities and the indebtedness incurred to fund the acquisition. In accordance with FAS 141, Business Combinations, we allocated the purchase consideration to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed based on their fair values. Since the purchase consideration of $1.4 billion was less than the $1.9 billion combined carrying value of the liabilities and the equity purchased by Cerberus, the purchase price allocation resulted in lower carrying values for our assets after the 2005 Acquisition. The carrying values of our assets and liabilities influence our results of operations and, accordingly, the net decrease in asset carrying values, which resulted from the 2005 Acquisition, has resulted in improved operating performance when compared to periods prior to the 2005 Acquisition.
The material impacts on our consolidated income statement of the 2005 Acquisition relate to purchase accounting adjustments in our assets which are reflected in lower depreciation expense and lower cost of goods sold due to reduced net book values, and in lower interest on debt expense due to the elimination of $802.0 million of debt as described in the preceding paragraph. Other than the corresponding effect on income from continuing operations before provision for income taxes and net income, the 2005 Acquisition did not materially impact any of the other line items in our consolidated income statement.
Acquisition of AeroTurbine
On April 26, 2006, we acquired all of the existing share capital of AeroTurbine, Inc. an engine trading and leasing and part sales company. We acquired AeroTurbine to implement our strategy of managing aircraft profitably throughout their lifecycle, to diversify our investment in aviation assets and to obtain a more significant presence in the market for older aircraft equipment. The total payment for the AeroTurbine shares of $144.7 million, including acquisition expenses, was funded through cash from our operations of $70.9 million and $73.8 million of cash raised from a refinancing of AeroTurbine's existing debt. The new financing totaled $175.0 million and included $160.0 million of senior secured debt and a $15.0 million subordinated loan guaranteed by AerCap B.V. We used the net proceeds from our initial public offering for the prepayment of the senior and subordinated debt at AeroTurbine.
In accordance with FAS 141, Business Combinations, we allocated the purchase price paid to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed based on their fair values. Since the purchase consideration of $144.7 million was greater than the $82.1 million combined carrying value of the assets purchased and liabilities assumed by us, the purchase price allocation resulted in higher carrying values for the AeroTurbine assets as well as $25.6 million of intangible assets and goodwill of $38.2 million. The increase in net book values of assets and intangible assets will be reflected in higher depreciation and amortization expense in future periods than would have occurred without the acquisition. The inclusion of AeroTurbine in our consolidated results has increased our lease and sales revenue and cost of goods
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sold through the addition of $249.5 million and $229.4 million of combined flight equipment and inventory in our December 31, 2006 and March 31, 2007 consolidated balance sheets, respectively. In addition, the interest on AeroTurbine's debt has increased our consolidated interest expense. The inclusion of AeroTurbine's operations has also increased our selling, general and administrative expenses and we recognized $62.4 million of share-based compensation, net of taxes, in our consolidated selling, general and administrative expenses for the year ended December 31, 2006 related to restricted shares, of the Bermuda Parents sold by Cerberus to the selling shareholders of AeroTurbine, in connection with the AeroTurbine Acquisition.
Prior to the AeroTurbine Acquisition, we operated our business as one reportable segment: leasing, financing, sales and management of commercial aircraft. From the date of the AeroTurbine Acquisition, we manage our business and analyze and report our results on the basis of two business segments: leasing, financing, sales and management of commercial aircraft ("Aircraft") and leasing, financing and sales of engines and parts ("Engines and Parts").
Stock Compensation Expenses
Our financial results for the year ended December 31, 2006 include a charge of $68.3 million, net of tax of $10.3 million for non-cash share-based compensation expense related to the vesting of options and restricted stock previously granted or sold to the owners of AeroTurbine at the time of its acquisition by us and to members of our senior management, our non-executive directors and an employee of Cerberus primarily in connection with the 2005 Acquisition. While we will continue to recognize some additional non-cash, share-based compensation in connection with these options and restricted shares (excluding the shares sold to the owners of AeroTurbine), those charges are not expected to be of a similar magnitude as those recognized in 2006. We recognized a share-based compensation charge of $1.9 million, net of tax of $0.5 million, in the three months ended March 31, 2007.
Goodwill Impairment
In 2004, we recorded an impairment of all of our existing goodwill of $132.4 million as a result of our annual goodwill impairment test. We calculate our valuation using a discounted cash flow approach that considers all of our existing assets and liabilities as well as our business plans. Based on the factors described below, in 2004 our goodwill impairment analysis resulted in the impairment of all of our then existing goodwill. In years prior to the 2005 Acquisition, our ability to grow and make additional aviation investments was primarily controlled by our prior shareholders who were also our primary source of debt funding. In 2004, we signed a new $1.6 billion facility agreement with our prior shareholders to refinance all of our previous senior debt contracted with them. The new facility agreement included significant constraints on our operations and our ability to make additional investments and required that a substantial amount of internally generated cash from asset sales be used to pre-pay our obligations under the facility agreement. In 2004, our shareholders also indicated that they were not willing to invest additional equity capital in us. We revised our discounted cash flow projection downward in 2004 to reflect these factors. In addition, we were aware that our shareholders were in discussions to sell their stake in us for consideration significantly less than our net equity value. As a result of our analysis, we recorded a $132.4 million impairment to write down all of our then existing goodwill in 2004.
Critical Accounting Policies Applicable to Us
Our Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations is based upon our consolidated financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP, and require us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes. The use of estimates is or could be a
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significant factor affecting the reported carrying values of flight equipment, investments, trade and notes receivable, deferred tax assets and accruals and reserves. Our estimates and assumptions are based on historical experiences and currently available information. We utilize professional appraisers and valuation experts, where possible, to support our estimates, particularly with respect to flight equipment. Despite our best efforts, actual results may differ from our estimates under different conditions, sometimes materially. A summary of our significant accounting policies is presented in Note 2 to our audited consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this prospectus. Critical accounting policies and estimates are defined as those that are both most important to the portrayal of our financial condition and results of operations and require our most subjective judgments, estimates and assumptions. Our most critical accounting policies and estimates are described below.
Lease Revenue Recognition
We lease flight equipment principally under operating leases and report rental income on a straight-line basis over the life of the lease as it is earned. Virtually all of our lease contracts require payment in advance. Rents collected in advance of when they are earned are recorded as deferred revenue on our balance sheet and recorded as lease revenue as they are earned. Provisions for doubtful notes and accounts receivables are recorded in the income statement when rentals become past-due and the rentals exceed security deposits held, except where it is anticipated that the lease will end in repossession and then provisions are made regardless of the level of security deposits. Our management monitors the status of customers and the collectability of their receivables based on factors such as the customer's credit worthiness, payment performance, financial condition and requests for modifications of lease terms and conditions. Customers for whom collectability is not reasonably assured are placed on non-accrual status and revenue is recorded on a cash basis. When our management deems the collectability to be reasonably assured, based on the above factors, the customer is removed from non-accrual status and revenue is recognized on an accrual basis. As described below under "Accrued Maintenance Liability", revenue from supplemental maintenance rent is recognized when we are no longer legally obligated to refund such rent to our customer, which normally coincides with lease termination or where the terms of the lease allow us to control the occurrence, timing or amount of such reimbursement.
Depreciation and Amortization
Flight equipment held for operating leases, including aircraft, is recorded on our balance sheet at cost less accumulated depreciation and impairment. Aircraft are depreciated over the assets' useful life, which is 25 years from the date of manufacture for substantially all of our aircraft, using the straight-line method to estimated residual values. Estimated residual values are generally determined to be approximately 15% of the manufacturer's price.
We depreciate current production model engines on a straight-line basis over a 15-year period from the acquisition date to an estimated residual value. We estimate residual values of current production model engines based on observed current market prices and management expectations of value trends. Out-of-production engines are depreciated on a straight-line basis over an estimated useful life ranging from five to seven years to an estimated residual value. The carrying value of flight equipment that we designate for disassembly is transferred to our inventory pool and is held for sale at the time of such designation. We discontinue the depreciation of our flight equipment when it is held as inventory. Differences between our estimates of useful lives and residual values and actual experience may result in future impairments of aircraft or engines and/or additional gains or losses upon disposal. We review residual values of aircraft and engines periodically based on our knowledge of current residual values and residual value trends to determine if they are appropriate and record adjustments as necessary.
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Intangibles related to customer relationships are amortized over ten years, which is the length of time that we expect to benefit from existing customer relationships. The amortization in each year is based on the anticipated sales in each year which benefit from such relationships. Our FAA certificate is amortized straight-line over 15 years, the remaining estimated useful life of the engine type to which the repair station certificate relates. Amortization of the non-compete agreement is straight-line over six years, which is the sum of the term of the employment agreements of the related individuals and the term of the non-compete agreements.
Inventory
Inventory, which consists exclusively of finished goods, is valued at the lower of cost or market. Cost is primarily determined using the specific identification method for individual part purchases and whole engines and on an allocated basis for dismantled engines, aircraft, and bulk inventory purchases using the relationship of the cost of the dismantled engine, aircraft or bulk inventory purchase to estimated remaining sales value at the time of purchase. We evaluate the carrying value of inventory on a regular basis in order to account for any permanent impairment in values. We estimate market value for this purpose based on internal estimates of sales values and recent sales activity of similar inventory.
Impairments
In accordance with FAS 144, Accounting for the Impairment or Disposal of Long-Lived Assets, our flight equipment held for operating lease and definite lived intangible assets are evaluated for impairment when events and circumstances indicate that the carrying amounts of those assets may not be recoverable. The review for recoverability includes an assessment of the estimated future cash flows associated with the use of an asset and its eventual disposition. If the sum of the expected future cash flows (undiscounted and without interest charges) is less than the carrying amount of the asset, an impairment loss is recognized. The loss is measured as the excess of the carrying amount of the impaired asset over its fair value. Fair value reflects the present value of cash expected to be received from the asset in the future, including its expected residual value discounted at a rate commensurate with the associated risk. Future cash flows are assumed to occur under then current market conditions and assume adequate time for a sale between a willing buyer and a willing seller. Expected future lease rates are based on all relevant information available, including current contracted rates for similar assets, appraisal data and industry trends. Residual value assumptions generally reflect an asset's booked residual, except where more recent industry information indicates a different value is appropriate.
In accordance with FAS 142, Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets, we evaluate any goodwill and indefinite lived intangible assets for impairment at the reporting unit level each year or upon the occurrence of events or circumstances that indicate that the asset may be impaired. We determine the fair value of our reporting units using discounted cash flow and earnings multiples valuation methodologies. When our valuation suggests that the fair value of our reporting unit is less than our net equity, we determine the amount of implied goodwill by allocating the fair value of the reporting unit to our assets and liabilities as we would in purchase accounting and adjust our goodwill to its implied value through an impairment entry. If we fail to meet our forecasted future cash flows or if weak economic conditions prevail in our primary markets, the estimated fair values of our reporting unit may be adversely affected, resulting in impairment charges.
Allocation of Purchase Price to Acquired Assets
We account for business combinations in accordance with FAS 141, Business Combinations. We apply the purchase price of all acquisitions to the fair value of acquired assets and liabilities, including identifiable intangible assets and liabilities. To determine fair value, we utilize a combination of third
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party appraisers, our own recent experience in the market place and discounted cash flow analyses. Our discounted cash flow analyses require us to make estimates and assumptions of the future use of these assets and their impact on our financial position. We apply a discount rate to each different asset or liability based on prevailing interest rates and the underlying credit of the obligor.
Accrued Maintenance Liability
On September 8, 2006, the Financial Accounting Standards Board issued the FSP No. AUG AIR-1 "Accounting for Planned Major Maintenance Activities" (the "FSP"). The FSP amends certain provisions in the AICPA Industry Audit Guide, "Audit of Airlines", and is applicable for our financial year beginning January 1, 2007.
In all of our leases, lessees are responsible for maintenance and repairs of our flight equipment and related expenses during the term of the lease. In many operating lease and finance lease contracts, the lessee has the obligation to make periodic payments of supplemental rent which are calculated with reference to the utilization of airframes, engines and other major life-limited components during the lease. In the majority of these types of leases, we do not recognize such supplemental rent received as revenue, but as an accrued maintenance liability. In these leases, upon lessee presentation of invoices evidencing the completion of qualifying maintenance on the flight equipment, we make a payment to the lessee up to the amount of supplemental rents collected and charge such payment against the existing accrued maintenance liability. In shorter-term lease contracts (primarily engine lease contracts) where the terms of the lease are designed specifically to allow us to directly manage the occurrence, timing and associated cost of qualifying maintenance work on the flight equipment, we recognize supplemental rents collected during the lease as lease revenue and not as accrued maintenance liability. For flight equipment subject to these shorter-term contracts, we record a charge to leasing expenses at the time maintenance work is performed on the flight equipment.
In most lease contracts not requiring the payment of supplemental rents, the lessee is required to re-deliver the aircraft in a similar maintenance condition (normal wear and tear excepted) as when accepted under the lease, with reference to major life-limited components of the aircraft. To the extent that such components are redelivered in a different condition than at acceptance, there is normally an end-of-lease compensation adjustment for the difference at redelivery. We recognize receipts of end-of-lease compensation adjustments as lease revenue when received and payments of end-of-lease adjustments as leasing expenses when paid.
In addition, in both types of contracts, we may be obligated to make additional payments to the lessee for maintenance related expenses (lessor maintenance contributions or top-ups) primarily related to usage of major life-limited components occurring prior to the lease. We record a charge to leasing expenses at the time of the occurrence of a lessor contribution or top-up payment, except in instances where we have established an accrual as an assumed liability for such payment in connection with the purchase of an aircraft with a lease attached, in which case such payments are charged against the existing accrual.
For all of our lease contracts, any amounts of accrued maintenance liability existing at the end of a lease are released and recognized as lease revenue at lease termination. When flight equipment is sold, the portion of the accrued maintenance liability which is not specifically assigned to the buyer is released from the balance sheet and recognized as sales revenue as part of the sale of the flight equipment.
Consolidation
We consolidate all companies in which we have direct or indirect legal or effective control and all variable interest entities for which we are deemed the primary beneficiary under FIN 46R. Consolidated entities include certain joint ventures such as our AerVenture and Bella joint ventures,
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our Aircraft Lease Securitisation securitization vehicle and our AerFunding financing vehicle, but exclude AerDragon and Annabel. The determination of which entities are variable interest entities and of which variable interest entities we are the primary beneficiary involves the use of significant estimates, including whether the entity has sufficient equity to finance its activities without additional subordinated financial support and the expected cash flows to the entity and distributions of those cash flows in the future. We estimate expected cash flows based on the variable interest entities' contractual rights and obligations as well as reasonable expectations for future business developments. We then adjust these cash flow estimates to simulate possible changes in economic trends which could impact the variable interest entity to determine which entity will absorb a majority of the variability in order to determine if we are the primary beneficiary of the variable interest entity.
Deferred Income Taxes
We provide for income taxes according to FAS 109, Accounting for Income Taxes. We have significant tax loss carryforwards in certain of our subsidiaries. We evaluate valuation allowances for tax losses at the individual company level or consolidated tax group level in accordance with the tax law in the specific jurisdiction. We evaluate the potential for recovery of our tax losses by estimating the future taxable profits expected from each subsidiary and considering prudent and feasible tax planning strategies. In estimating future taxable profits, we consider all current contracts and assets of the business, as well as a reasonable estimation of future taxable profits achievable by us. If we are not able to achieve the level of projected taxable profits used in our assessment, and no tax planning strategies are available to us, an additional valuation allowance may be required against our tax assets with a corresponding charge to our income statement in the future.
Financial Period Convention
AerCap Holdings C.V. (the predecessor to AerCap Holdings N.V.) was formed on June 27, 2005; however, it did not commence operations until June 30, 2005, when it acquired all of the shares and certain of the liabilities of AerCap B.V. AerCap Holdings C.V.'s initial accounting period was from June 27, 2005 to December 31, 2005 but it generated no material revenue or expense between June 27, 2005 and June 30, 2005, and did not have any material assets before the 2005 Acquisition. For convenience of presentation only, we have labeled AerCap Holdings C.V.'s initial accounting period in table headings in this prospectus as the six months ended December 31, 2005. In addition, for presentation purposes in this Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, we have combined the six months ended June 30, 2005 of AerCap B.V., our predecessor, with AerCap Holdings C.V.'s initial accounting period into a 12 month period ended December 31, 2005. The financial information presented for this combined period reflects the addition, with no adjustments, of the results of AerCap B.V. for the six months ended June 30, 2005 and for AerCap Holdings C.V.'s initial accounting period ended December 31, 2005. The combined period information is included as a combined presentation since it is the way our management analyzes our business results. This combined presentation, however, is not in accordance with U.S. GAAP and should be considered as supplemental information only.
Revenues
Our revenues consist primarily of lease revenue from aircraft and engine leases, sales revenue, management fee revenue and interest revenue.
Lease Revenue
Nearly all of our aircraft and engine lease agreements provide for the payment of a fixed, periodic amount of rent or a floating, periodic amount of rent tied to interest rates during the term of the lease. In limited circumstances, our leases may require a basic rental payment based partially or exclusively on
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the amount of usage during a period. In addition, we recognize revenue at lease termination when we collect end-of-lease compensation payments or release accrued maintenance liabilities which are not required to be paid to the lessee. The amount of lease revenue we recognize is primarily influenced by five factors:
In addition to aircraft or engine specific factors such as the type, condition and age of the asset, the lease rates for our leases with fixed rental payments are determined in part by reference to the prevailing interest rate for a debt instrument with a term similar to the lease term and with a similar credit quality as the lessee at the time we enter into the lease. Many of the factors described in the bullet points above are influenced by global and regional economic trends, airline market conditions, the supply and demand balance for the type of flight equipment we own and our ability to remarket flight equipment subject to expiring lease contracts under favorable economic terms.
We operate our business on a global basis. As of March 31, 2007, we had 133 aircraft on lease (excluding four aircraft that we intend to disassemble or sell at the end of their leases) to 57 customers in 35 countries, with no lessee accounting for more than 10% of lease revenue in the year ended December 31, 2006 and the three months ended March 31, 2007. The following table shows the regional profile of our lease revenue for the periods indicated:
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AerCap B.V. |
AerCap Holdings N.V. |
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Year ended December 31, 2004 |
Six months ended June 30, 2005 |
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Six months ended December 31, 2005 |
Year ended December 31, 2006 |
Three months ended March 31, 2007 |
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Asia-Pacific | 35 | % | 43 | % | 44 | % | 43 | % | 33 | % | ||||
Europe | 36 | 33 | 33 | 35 | 37 | |||||||||
North America/Caribbean | 21 | 18 | 18 | 15 | 21 | |||||||||
Latin America | 7 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 9 | |||||||||
Africa/Middle East | 1 | | | | | |||||||||
Total | 100 | % | 100 | % | 100 | % | 100 | % | 100 | % | ||||
The geographical concentration of our customer base has varied historically, reflecting the opportunities available in particular markets at a given time.
Sales Revenue
Our sales revenue is generated from the sale of our aircraft, engines, and inventory. The price we receive for our aircraft, engines and inventory is largely dependent on the condition of the asset being sold, prevailing interest rates, airline market conditions and the supply and demand balance for the type of asset we are selling. Before the 2005 Acquisition, we primarily sold older Fokker, Airbus and Boeing aircraft. After the 2005 Acquisition, we began focusing on aircraft trading and began opportunistically selling newer Airbus and Boeing aircraft. As a result, our sales revenue has increased significantly after the 2005 Acquisition. The timing of the closing of aircraft and engine sales is often uncertain, as a sale may be concluded swiftly or negotiations may extend over several weeks or months.
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As a result, even if sales are comparable over a long period of time, during any particular fiscal quarter or other reporting period we may close significantly more or fewer sale transactions than in other reporting periods. Accordingly, sales revenue recorded in one fiscal quarter or other reporting period may not be comparable to sales revenue in other periods.
Management Fee Revenue
We generate management fee revenue through a variety of management services that we provide to non-consolidated aircraft securitization vehicles and joint ventures and third party owners of aircraft. Our management services include leasing and remarketing services, cash management and treasury services, technical advisory services and accounting and administrative services. We currently generate almost three quarters of our management fee income from services we provide to two securitization vehicles, Airplanes Group and AerCo. Since Aircraft Lease Securitisation's results are consolidated in our financial statements, we do not generate any accounting revenue from the services we provide to it.
Interest Revenue
Our interest revenue is derived primarily from deposit interest on unrestricted and restricted cash balances and interest recognized on financial instruments we hold, such as notes issued by lessees in connection with lease restructurings and subordinated debt investments in unconsolidated securitization vehicles or affiliates. The amount of interest revenue we recognize in any period is influenced by the amount of free or restricted cash balances, the principal balance of financial instruments we hold, contracted or effective interest rates, and movements in provisions for financial instruments which can affect adjustments to valuations or provisions.
Other Revenue
Our other revenue includes net gains or losses we generate from the sale of aircraft related investments, such as our subordinated interests in securitization vehicles and notes, warrants or convertible securities issued by our lessees, which we receive from lessees as compensation for amounts owed to us in connection with lease restructurings. The amount of other revenue recognized in any period is influenced by the number of saleable financial instruments we hold, the credit profile of the obligor and the demand for such investments in the market at the time. Since there is limited or no market liquidity for some of the securities we receive in connection with lease restructurings, making the securities difficult to value, and because many of the issuers of the securities are in a distressed financial condition, we may experience volatility in our revenues when we sell our aircraft related investments due to significant changes in their value.
Operating Expenses
Our primary operating expenses consist of depreciation, interest on debt, other operating expenses and selling, general and administrative expenses.
Depreciation
We depreciate our aircraft on a straight-line basis over the asset's useful life, which is 25 years from the date of manufacture for substantially all of our aircraft, to an estimated residual value. We depreciate current production model engines on a straight-line basis over a 15-year period from the acquisition date to an estimated residual value. Out-of-production engines are depreciated on a straight-line basis over an estimated useful life ranging from five to seven years to an estimated residual value. Our depreciation expense is influenced by the adjusted gross book values of our flight equipment, the depreciable life of the flight equipment and the estimated residual value of the flight equipment. Adjusted gross book value is the original cost of our flight equipment, including purchase
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expenses, adjusted for subsequent capitalized improvements, impairments, and accounting basis adjustments associated with business combinations.
Cost of Goods Sold
Our cost of goods sold consists of the net book value of flight equipment, including inventory, sold to third parties at the time of the sale. Before the 2005 Acquisition, we primarily sold older Fokker, Airbus and Boeing aircraft. After the 2005 Acquisition, we began focusing on aircraft trading and began opportunistically selling newer Airbus and Boeing aircraft. As a result, our cost of good sold has increased significantly after the 2005 Acquisition.
Interest on Debt
Our interest on debt expense arises from a variety of funding structures and related derivative instruments as described in "Indebtedness". Interest on debt expense in any period is primarily affected by contracted interest rates, principal amounts of indebtedness, including notional values of derivative instruments and unrealized mark-to-market gains or losses on derivative instruments. Since we recognize mark-to-market gains and losses on our derivative instruments, our interest on debt expense may fluctuate significantly from one period to another due to changes in market interest rates. Accordingly, interest on debt expense recorded in one fiscal quarter or other reporting period may not be comparable to interest on debt expense in other periods.
Other Operating Expenses
Our other operating expenses consist primarily of operating lease-in costs, leasing expenses and provision for doubtful notes and accounts receivable.
Our operating lease-in costs relate to our lease obligations for aircraft we lease from financial investors and sublease to aircraft operators. We entered into all of our lease-in transactions between 1988 and 1992 and these leases expire between 2008 and 2012. As described in Note 16 to our consolidated financial statements included in this prospectus, we have established an onerous contract accrual equal to the difference between the present value of our lease expenses and the sublease revenue we receive, discounted at appropriate discount rates. The amount of this liability amortizes monthly as a reduction of operating lease-in costs on a constant yield basis as we meet our obligations to the aircrafts' legal owners under the applicable leases.
Our leasing expenses consist primarily of maintenance expenses on our flight equipment, which we incur when our flight equipment is off lease, lessor maintenance contribution expenses, technical expenses we incur to monitor the maintenance condition of our flight equipment during a lease, end of lease compensation payments, expenses to transition flight equipment from an expired lease to a new lease contract and non-capitalizable flight equipment transaction expenses. As indicated in our unaudited condensed consolidated interim income statements for the three months ended March 31, 2006 and 2007 and our audited consolidated income statements for the year ended December 31, 2004, the six months ended June 30, 2005, the six months ended December 31, 2005 and the year ended December 31, 2006 included in this prospectus, we have adjusted leasing our expenses in each period in connection with our adoption of FSP No. AUG AIR-1 "Accounting for Planned Major Maintenance Activities" issued on September 8, 2006, by the Financial Standards Board (the "FSP").
Our provision for doubtful notes and accounts receivable consists primarily of provisions we establish to reduce the carrying value of our notes and accounts receivables to estimated collectible levels.
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The primary factors affecting our other operating expenses are:
Selling, General and Administrative Expenses
Our principal selling, general and administrative expenses consist of personnel expenses, including salaries, share-based compensation charges, employee benefits, professional and advisory costs and office and travel expenses as summarized in Note 23 to our audited consolidated financial statements included in this prospectus. The level of our selling, general and administrative expenses is influenced primarily by our number of employees and the extent of transactions or ventures we pursue which require the assistance of outside professionals or advisors. Our selling, general and administrative expenses also include the mark-to-market gains and losses for our foreign exchange rate hedges related to our Euro denominated selling, general and administrative expenses.
Provisions for Income Taxes
Our operations are taxable primarily in four main jurisdictions in which we manage our business: The Netherlands, Ireland, the United States and Sweden. Deferred income taxes are provided to reflect the impact of temporary differences between our U.S. GAAP income from continuing operations before income taxes and minority interests and our taxable income. Our effective tax rate has varied significantly year to year from 2003 to 2006. The primary source of temporary differences is the availability of accelerated tax depreciation in our primary operating jurisdictions. Our effective tax rate in any year depends on the tax rates in the jurisdictions from which our income is derived along with the extent of permanent differences between U.S. GAAP income from continuing operations before income taxes and minority interests and taxable income.
We have substantial tax losses in certain jurisdictions which can be carried forward, which we recognize as tax assets. We evaluate the recoverability of tax assets in each jurisdiction in each period based upon our estimates of future taxable income in those jurisdictions. If we determine that we are not likely to generate sufficient taxable income in a jurisdiction prior to expiration, if any, of the availability of tax losses, we establish a valuation allowance against the tax loss to reduce the tax asset to its recoverable value. We evaluate the appropriate level of valuation allowances annually and make adjustments as necessary. Increases or decreases to valuation allowances can affect our provision for income taxes on our consolidated income statement and consequently may affect our effective tax rate in a given year. The consummation of this offering will give rise to an "ownership change" for U.S. federal income tax purposes. This ownership change will create an annual limitation on our ability to utilize some of our U.S. tax net operating loss carryforwards against the taxable income of our U.S. subsidiaries. Notwithstanding this limitation, we believe that we will be able to utilize all U.S. tax net operating loss carryforwards that are valued as tax assets on our balance sheet prior to the expiration of those loss carryforwards.
Recent Developments
On May 8, 2007, Aircraft Lease Securitisation completed a refinancing of its securitized notes with the issuance of $1.66 billion of AAA-rated class G-3 floating rate notes. The proceeds from the issuance of these notes were used to redeem all of the outstanding Aircraft Lease Securitisation debt,
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other than the most junior class of notes, to refinance the indebtedness that had been incurred to purchase 24 previously acquired aircraft, and to finance the purchase of four additional new aircraft, increasing Aircraft Lease Securitisation's aircraft portfolio size to 70 aircraft. The class G-3 notes bear an interest rate of one-month LIBOR plus 26 basis points. Concurrently with the Aircraft Lease Securitisation refinancing, our revolving credit facility was amended and restated, resulting in a reduced interest rate spread and a two-year extension of the revolving period. The size of our revolving credit facility remains $1.0 billion. As a result of the Aircraft Lease Securitisation refinancing and the amendment to our revolving credit facility, we expect to report a non-recurring expense in the second quarter of 2007 of approximately $27 million for the write-off of unamortized debt issuance costs related to the refinanced debt, costs related to the prepayment of the prior Aircraft Lease Securitisation notes and other related fees.
During the three months ended June 30, 2007, in addition to sales of parts inventory and one aircraft by our subsidiary, AeroTurbine, we sold one Airbus A321 aircraft and one Boeing 737-400 aircraft, both of which were previously classified as flight equipment held for operating leases. Sales revenue resulting from the sale of these two aircraft totaled $57.4 million. The cost of goods sold related to the sale of these two aircraft totaled $37.8 million. During the three months ended June 30, 2007, we took delivery of one Airbus A320-200 aircraft, one A319-100 aircraft and one Boeing 737-800, each of which we had contracted to purchase in prior periods. In addition, AeroTurbine, our subsidiary, purchased two Airbus A320-200 aircraft, two Boeing 757 aircraft, three Bombardier aircraft and one McDonnell Douglas MD-83 aircraft in the three months ending June 30, 2007. At June 30, 2007, the anticipated gross book value of flight equipment we expect to take delivery of during the full year 2007, based on contracted purchase agreements and signed letters of intent was $791.9 million. Of that amount, a total of approximately $458.6 million was delivered to us during the first six months of 2007, including the aircraft discussed above delivered during the three months ended June 30, 2007.
During the three months ended June 30, 2007, we reached an agreement on the value of a damages claim we had filed with a previous lessee which had filed for bankruptcy protection. We had previously sold our claim to a third party subject to final valuation of the claim. We recognized a gain of $9.0 million upon signing the settlement agreement with the airline which will be recorded as other income on our consolidated income statements for the three months ended June 30, 2007.
During the three months ended June 30, 2007, we executed sale agreements for the sale of three Airbus A330-300 aircraft subject to leases, which we delivered in July 2007. In addition, we executed agreements for the sale of two A300 freighter aircraft subject to leases, of which one is expected to be delivered in September 2007 and the other is expected to be delivered in September 2008. The aggregate sales price for the four aircraft to be delivered in the three months ending September 30, 2007 was approximately $170 million. All aircraft mentioned above will be classified as flight equipment available for sale on our consolidated balance sheet at June 30, 2007.
63
Results of Operations for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2007 Compared to the Three Months Ended March 31, 2006
The following table shows a comparison of our results for the three months ended March 31, 2007 to the three months ended March 31, 2006.
|
AerCap Holdings N.V. |
|||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Three months ended March 31, 2006 |
Three months ended March 31, 2007 |
Increase/ (decrease) |
Percentage difference |
||||||||
|
(US dollars in millions) |
|||||||||||
Revenues | ||||||||||||
Lease revenue | $ | 88.0 | $ | 139.7 | $ | 51.7 | 58.8 | % | ||||
Sales revenue | 33.2 | 148.9 | 115.7 | 348.5 | % | |||||||
Management fee revenue | 3.7 | 3.0 | (0.7 | ) | (18.9 | )% | ||||||
Interest revenue | 8.9 | 7.3 | (1.6 | ) | (18.0 | )% | ||||||
Other revenue | 5.3 | 10.6 | 5.3 | 100.0 | % | |||||||
Total revenues | 139.1 | 309.5 | 170.4 | 122.5 | % | |||||||
Expenses | ||||||||||||
Depreciation | 24.3 | 33.9 | 9.6 | 39.5 | % | |||||||
Cost of goods sold | 20.5 | 118.0 | 97.5 | 475.6 | % | |||||||
Interest on debt | 28.2 | 50.5 | 22.3 | 79.1 | % | |||||||
Other operating expenses | 9.6 | 10.1 | 0.5 | 5.2 | % | |||||||
Selling, general and administrative expenses | 11.1 | 26.6 | 15.5 | 139.6 | % | |||||||
Total expenses | 93.7 | 239.1 | 145.4 | 155.2 | % | |||||||
Income from continuing operations before income taxes and minority interest | 45.4 | 70.4 | 25.0 | 55.1 | % | |||||||
Provision for income taxes | (10.4 | ) | (10.0 | ) | 0.4 | 3.8 | % | |||||
Minority interest net of taxes | 0.6 | 0.2 | (0.4 | ) | (66.7 | )% | ||||||
Net income | $ | 35.6 | $ | 60.6 | $ | 25.0 | 70.2 | % | ||||
Revenues. Our total revenues increased by $170.4 million, or 122.5%, to $309.5 million in the three months ended March 31, 2007 from $139.1 million in the three months ended March 31, 2006. In the three months ended March 31, 2007, we generated $256.4 million in our aircraft segment and $53.0 million in our engine and parts segment, and, in the three months ended March 31, 2006, we generated $139.1 million in our aircraft segment and no revenue in our engine and parts segment since we had not yet acquired AeroTurbine.
The increase in lease revenue was attributable primarily to:
64
The increase in sales revenue was attributable primarily to:
The decrease in management fee revenue in the three months ended March 31, 2007 compared to the three months ended March 31, 2006 was due to the termination of a management contract due to the liquidation of the aircraft-owning entity and due to a decrease in management fees on one of our contracts as a result of a reduction, over time, in managed aircraft under the contract due to sales of aircraft in the portfolio.
The decrease in interest revenue in the three months ended March 31, 2007 compared with the three months ended March 31, 2006 was due to the sale of financial assets in 2006. In 2006 we sold four unsecured notes receivable which generated interest revenue in the three months ended March 31, 2006.
The increase in other revenue was primarily due to the gain of $10.7 million in the three months ended March 31, 2007 from the reversal of a liability upon cancellation of a guarantee we provided in connection with a lease-in/lease-out structure that was unwound in the three months ended March 31, 2007. The $10.7 million increase in other revenue increased our net income in the three months ended March 31, 2007 by an equivalent amount. In the three months ended March 31, 2006, we sold two unsecured notes receivable for a gain of $4.2 million and received $1.1 million from an investment in liquidation.
Depreciation. Depreciation increased by $9.6 million, or 39.5%, to $33.9 million in the three months ended March 31, 2007 from $24.3 million in the three months ended March 31, 2006 due primarily to the acquisition between January 1, 2006 and March 31, 2007 of 54 aircraft for leasing with an aggregate net book value of $1.1 billion at the date of acquisition, partially offset by the sale of 21 aircraft, (primarily older Fokker aircraft) during such period, with an aggregate net book value of $230.4 million at the date of sale and the increased depreciation resulting from the AeroTurbine Acquisition.
Cost of Goods Sold. Cost of goods sold increased by $97.5 million, or 475.6%, to $118.0 million in the three months ended March 31, 2007 from $20.5 million in the three months ended March 31, 2006 primarily due to:
65
goods sold was the result of the mix of aircraft types sold, which included one A330 aircraft in the three months ended March 31, 2007;
Interest on Debt. Our interest on debt increased by $22.3 million, or 79.1%, to $50.5 million in the three months ended March 31, 2007 from $28.2 million in the three months ended March 31, 2006. The increase in interest on debt was principally caused by:
Other Operating Expenses. Our other operating expenses increased by $0.5 million, or 5.2%, to $10.1 million in the three months ended March 31, 2007 from $9.6 million in the three months ended March 31, 2006. The principal categories of our other operating expenses and their variances were as follows:
|
Three months ended March 31, 2006 |
Three months ended March 31, 2007 |
Increase/ (decrease) |
Percentage difference |
||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
(US dollars in millions) |
|||||||||||
Operating lease in costs | $ | 6.4 | $ | 6.2 | $ | (0.2 | ) | (3.1 | )% | |||
Leasing expenses | 4.5 | 4.0 | (0.5 | ) | (11.1 | )% | ||||||
Provision for doubtful notes and accounts receivable | (1.3 | ) | (0.1 | ) | 1.2 | 92.3 | % | |||||
Total | $ | 9.6 | $ | 10.1 | $ | 0.5 | 5.2 | % | ||||
The increase in our other operating expenses was primarily due to a $1.2 million decrease in the level of recoveries of certain provisioned receivables in the three months ended March 31, 2007 compared to the three months ended March 31, 2006.
Selling, General and Administrative Expenses. Our selling, general and administrative expenses increased by $15.5 million, or 139.6%, to $26.6 million in the three months ended March 31, 2007 from $11.1 million in the three months ended March 31, 2006, due primarily to (i) the AeroTurbine Acquisition on April 26, 2006, which resulted in a $11.0 million increase in selling, general and administrative expenses and (ii) charges for share-based compensation in the amount of $2.5 million in the three months ended March 31, 2007 which did not occur in the three months ended March 31, 2006.
Income From Continuing Operations Before Income Taxes and Minority Interests. For the reasons explained above, our income from continuing operations before income taxes and minority interests increased by $25.0 million, or 55.1%, to $70.4 million in the three months ended March 31, 2007 from $45.4 million in the three months ended March 31, 2006.
66
Provision for Income Taxes. Our provision for income taxes decreased by $0.4 million to $10.0 million in the three months ended March 31, 2007 from $10.4 million in the three months ended March 31, 2006. Our effective tax rate for the three months ended March 31, 2007 was 14.2% and was 23.0% for the three months ended March 31, 2006. The effective tax rate decreased primarily due to an increase in income generated in lower tax jurisdictions and a reduction in the Netherlands corporate tax rate from 29.6% to 25.5%.
Net Income. For the reasons explained above, our net income increased by $25.0 million, or 70.2%, to $60.6 million in the three months ended March 31, 2007 from $35.6 million in the three months ended March 31, 2006.
Results of Operations for 2006 Compared to 2005
|
|
Year ended December 31, 2006 |
|
|
||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Year ended December 31, 2005 |
|
|
|||||||||
|
AerCap Holdings N.V. |
Increase/ (decrease) |
Percentage Difference |
|||||||||
|
Aggregate non-GAAP |
|||||||||||
|
(US dollars in millions) |
|||||||||||
Revenues | ||||||||||||
Lease revenue | $ | 335.8 | $ | 443.9 | $ | 108.1 | 32.2 | % | ||||
Sales revenue | 88.3 | 301.4 | 213.1 | 241.3 | % | |||||||
Management fee revenue | 14.2 | 14.1 | (0.1 | ) | (0.7 | )% | ||||||
Interest revenue | 33.4 | 34.7 | 1.3 | 3.9 | % | |||||||
Other revenue | 4.5 | 20.3 | 15.8 | 351.1 | % | |||||||
Total revenues | 476.2 | 814.4 | 338.2 | 71.0 | % | |||||||
Expenses | ||||||||||||
Depreciation | 112.3 | 102.4 | (9.9 | ) | (8.8 | )% | ||||||
Cost of goods sold | 68.2 | 220.3 | 152.1 | 223.0 | % | |||||||
Interest on debt | 114.6 | 166.2 | 51.6 | 45.0 | % | |||||||
Other operating expenses | 59.0 | 46.5 | (12.5 | ) | (21.2 | )% | ||||||
Selling, general and administrative expenses | 46.5 | 149.4 | 102.9 | 221.3 | % | |||||||
Total expenses | 400.6 | 684.8 | 284.2 | 70.9 | % | |||||||
Income from continuing operations before income taxes and minority interest | 75.6 | 129.6 | 54.0 | 71.4 | % | |||||||
Provision for income taxes | (10.0 | ) | (21.2 | ) | (11.2 | ) | (112.0 | )% | ||||
Minority interest net of taxes | | 0.6 | 0.6 | 100.0 | % | |||||||
Net income | $ | 65.6 | $ | 109.0 | $ | 43.4 | 66.2 | % | ||||
67
Our results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2005 represent an aggregation of the results of operations for AerCap B.V. from January 1, 2005 to June 30, 2005 when it was owned by our prior shareholders and the results of operations for AerCap Holdings N.V. from June 27, 2005 (inception of AerCap Holdings C.V.) to December 31, 2005 following the 2005 Acquisition on June 30, 2005. These results have been aggregated to provide investors with information related to our operating results for the full year of 2005 on the same basis our management uses to analyze our business results and to provide a basis for comparing our results of operations in 2005 with our results for the year ended December 31, 2006. Results of operations for AerCap Holdings N.V. after the 2005 Acquisition include the effects of purchase accounting related to the 2005 Acquisition and, therefore, are not directly comparable to the results of operation for AerCap B.V. in the prior periods. In addition, due to the effects of purchase accounting related to the 2005 Acquisition, results of operations for periods which combine the results of AerCap B.V. prior to the 2005 Acquisition with the results of AerCap N.V. after the 2005 Acquisition are not comparable to periods of a similar length, but which include the results exclusively for periods after the 2005 Acquisition. The material impacts on our consolidated income statement of the 2005 Acquisition are reflected in lower depreciation expense due to reduced net book values, which resulted in a $20.9 million decrease in depreciation expense in 2005, and in lower interest on debt expense due to the elimination of certain debt, which resulted in a $19.6 million decrease in interest on debt expense in 2005. Other than the corresponding effect on income from continuing operations before income taxes and net income, the 2005 Acquisition did not materially impact any of the other line items in our consolidated income statement in 2005. We have included a reconciliation of our 2005 aggregate period results to our consolidated income statements prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP in the table below:
|
AerCap B.V. |
AerCap Holdings N.V. |
Aggregate non-GAAP |
|||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Six months ended June 30, 2005 |
Six months ended December 31, 2005 |
Year ended December 31, 2005 |
|||||||
|
(US dollars in millions) |
|||||||||
Revenues | ||||||||||
Lease revenue | $ | 162.2 | $ | 173.6 | $ | 335.8 | ||||
Sales revenues | 75.8 | 12.5 | 88.3 | |||||||
Management fee revenue | 6.5 | 7.7 | 14.2 | |||||||
Interest revenue | 13.1 | 20.3 | 33.4 | |||||||
Other revenue | 3.5 | 1.0 | 4.5 | |||||||
Total revenues | 261.1 | 215.1 | 476.2 | |||||||
Expenses | ||||||||||
Depreciation | 66.4 | 45.9 | 112.3 | |||||||
Cost of goods sold | 57.6 | 10.6 | 68.2 | |||||||
Interest on debt | 69.9 | 44.7 | 114.6 | |||||||
Other operating expenses | 32.4 | 26.6 | 59.0 | |||||||
Selling, general and administrative expenses | 19.6 | 26.9 | 46.5 | |||||||
Total expenses | 245.9 | 154.7 | 400.6 | |||||||
Income from continuing operations before income taxes | 15.2 | 60.4 | 75.6 | |||||||
Provisions for income taxes | 0.6 | (10.6 | ) | (10.0 | ) | |||||
Net income | $ | 15.8 | $ | 49.8 | $ | 65.6 | ||||
The aggregation of the results of operations data for 2005 is not in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Since AerCap Holdings N.V is a different reporting entity for accounting purposes from AerCap B.V., the aggregated information should be considered as supplemental information only. The financial information presented for this combined period reflects the addition, with no adjustments, of the results
68
of AerCap B.V. for the six months ended June 30, 2005 and the results of AerCap Holdings N.V. for the initial accounting period of the six months ended December 31, 2005.
Revenues. Our total revenues increased by $338.2 million, or 71.0%, to $814.4 million in the year ended December 31, 2006 from $476.2 million in the year ended December 31, 2005. In the year ended December 31, 2006, we generated $689.2 million of revenue in our aircraft segment and $125.2 million of revenue in our engine and parts segment, and, in the year ended December 31, 2005, we generated $476.2 million of revenue in our aircraft segment and no revenue in our engine and parts segment since we had not yet acquired AeroTurbine.
The increase in lease revenue was attributable primarily to:
The increase in sales revenue was attributable primarily to:
Management fee revenue did not materially change in the year ended December 31, 2006 compared to the year ended December 31, 2005.
Interest revenue did not materially change in the year ended December 31, 2006 compared to the year ended December 31, 2005.
The increase in other revenue was due to the increase in revenue from the sale of financial assets in the year ended December 31, 2006 compared to the year ended December 31, 2005. In the year ended December 31, 2006, we sold four unsecured notes receivable for a gain of $15.8 million, received $2.1 million from an investment in liquidation, sold notes secured by aircraft for a gain of $0.7 million and received $1.7 million from an insurance claim on an engine. In the year ended December 31, 2005, we sold our AerCo Series D Note for a gain of $4.6 million which was partially offset by our sale of notes secured by aircraft for a loss of $0.1 million.
69
Depreciation. Depreciation decreased by $9.9 million, or 8.8%, to $102.4 million in the year ended December 31, 2006 from $112.3 million in the year ended December 31, 2005 due primarily to the reduction of our asset values in connection with the 2005 Acquisition. The decrease was partially offset by the acquisition of 41 new aircraft between December 31, 2005 and December 31, 2006 with a book value at the time of the acquisition of $928.5 million and the increased depreciation resulting from the AeroTurbine Acquisition.
Cost of Goods Sold. Cost of goods sold increased by $152.1 million, or 223.0%, to $220.3 million in the year ended December 31, 2006 from $68.2 million in the year ended December 31, 2005 primarily due to:
Interest on Debt. Our interest on debt increased by $51.6 million, or 45.0%, to $166.2 million in the year ended December 31, 2006 from $114.6 million in the year ended December 31, 2005. The increase in interest on debt was principally caused by:
Other Operating Expenses. Our other operating expenses decreased by $12.5 million, or 21.2%, to $46.5 million in the year ended December 31, 2006 from $59.0 million in the year ended December 31, 2005. The principal categories of our other operating expenses and their variances were as follows:
|
Year ended December 31, 2005 |
Year ended December 31, 2006 |
Increase/ (decrease) |
Percentage Difference |
||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
(US dollars in millions) |
|||||||||||
Operating lease in costs | $ | 25.3 | $ | 25.2 | $ | (0.1 | ) | (0.4 | )% | |||
Leasing expenses | 27.5 | 21.5 | (6.0 | ) | (21.8 | )% | ||||||
Provision for doubtful notes and accounts receivable | 6.2 | (0.2 | ) | (6.4 | ) | (103.2 | )% | |||||
Total | $ | 59.0 | $ | 46.5 | $ | (12.5 | ) | (21.2 | )% | |||
Our leasing expenses decreased in the year ended December 31, 2006 primarily because we incurred lower maintenance expenses due to fewer lessee defaults than in 2005.
Our provision for doubtful notes and accounts receivable was lower in the year ended December 31, 2006 when compared to the year ended December 31, 2005 due to the decrease in lessee defaults in the year ended December 31, 2006 and the impact of certain recoveries of provisioned receivables in the year ended December 31, 2006.
70
Selling, General and Administrative Expenses. Our selling, general and administrative expenses increased by $102.9 million, or 221.3%, to $149.4 million in the year ended December 31, 2006 from $46.5 million in the year ended December 31, 2005, due primarily to (i) charges for share-based compensation in the amount of $78.6 million in 2006 which did not occur in 2005, (ii) the AeroTurbine Acquisition, which resulted in a $21.5 million increase in selling, general and administrative expenses and (iii) start-up costs for our two consolidated joint ventures, AerVenture and Bella, which totaled $3.8 million.
Net Income From Continuing Operations Before Income Taxes and Minority Interests. For the reasons explained above, our income from continuing operations before income taxes and minority interests increased by $54.0 million, or 71.4%, to $129.6 million in the year ended December 31, 2006 from $75.6 million in the year ended December 31, 2005.
Provision for Income Taxes. Our provision for income taxes increased by $11.2 million, or 112.0%, to $21.2 million in the year ended December 31, 2006 from $10.0 million in the year ended December 31, 2005. Our effective tax rate for the year ended December 31, 2005 was 13.2% and was 16.4% for the year ended December 31, 2006. The effective tax rate in 2006 was impacted by (i) charges for share-based compensation in the U.S., only a portion of which are tax-deductible, (ii) a reduction in The Netherlands corporate tax rate which resulted in a reduction of our Netherlands deferred tax assets and (iii) the reduction of a valuation allowance against our Swedish tax assets.
Net Income. For the reasons explained above, our net income increased by $43.4 million, or 66.2%, to $109.0 million in the year ended December 31, 2006 from $65.6 million in the year ended December 31, 2005.
Results of Operations for 2005 Compared to 2004
|
Year ended December 31, 2004 |
Aggregate non-GAAP Year ended December 31, 2005 |
Increase/ (decrease) |
Percentage difference |
||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
(US dollars in millions) |
|||||||||||
Revenues | ||||||||||||
Lease revenue | $ | 308.5 | $ | 335.8 | $ | 27.3 | 8.8 | % | ||||
Sales revenue | 32.1 | 88.3 | 56.2 | 175.1 | % | |||||||
Management fee revenue | 15.0 | 14.2 | (0.8 | ) | (5.3 | )% | ||||||
Interest revenue | 21.6 | 33.4 | 11.8 | 54.6 | % | |||||||
Other revenue | 13.7 | 4.5 | (9.2 | ) | (67.2 | )% | ||||||
Total revenues | 390.9 | 476.2 | 85.3 | 21.8 | % | |||||||
Expenses |
||||||||||||
Depreciation | 125.9 | 112.3 | (13.6 | ) | (10.8 | )% | ||||||
Cost of goods sold | 19.0 | 68.2 | 49.2 | 258.9 | % | |||||||
Interest on debt | 113.1 | 114.6 | 1.5 | 1.3 | % | |||||||
Impairments | 134.7 | | (134.7 | ) | (100.0 | )% | ||||||
Other operating expenses | 68.9 | 59.0 | (9.9 | ) | (14.4 | )% | ||||||
Selling, general and administrative expenses | 36.4 | 46.5 | 10.1 | 27.7 | % | |||||||
Total expenses | 498.0 | 400.6 | (97.4 | ) | (19.6 | )% | ||||||
Income (loss) from continuing operations before income taxes |
(107.1 |
) |
75.6 |
182.7 |
170.6 |
% |
||||||
Provisions for income taxes | 0.2 | (10.0 | ) | (10.2 | ) | (5,100.0 | )% | |||||
Net income |
$ |
(106.9 |
) |
$ |
65.6 |
$ |
172.5 |
161.4 |
% |
|||
71
Our results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2005 represent an aggregation of the results of operations for AerCap B.V. from January 1, 2005 to June 30, 2005 when it was owned by our prior shareholders and the results of operations for AerCap Holdings N.V. from June 27, 2005 (inception of AerCap Holdings C.V.) to December 31, 2005 following the 2005 Acquisition on June 30, 2005. These results have been aggregated to provide investors with information related to our operating results for the full year of 2005 on the same basis our management uses to analyze our business results and to provide a basis for comparing our results of operations in 2005 with prior periods. Results of operations for AerCap Holdings N.V. after the 2005 Acquisition include the effects of purchase accounting related to the 2005 Acquisition and, therefore, are not directly comparable to the results of operation for AerCap B.V. in the prior periods. In addition due to the effects of purchase accounting related to the 2005 Acquisition, results of operations for periods which combine the results of AerCap B.V. prior to the 2005 Acquisition with the results of AerCap N.V. after the 2005 Acquisition are not comparable to periods of a similar length, but which include the results exclusively for periods after the 2005 Acquisition. The material impacts on our consolidated income statement of the 2005 Acquisition are reflected in lower depreciation expense due to reduced net book values, which resulted in a $20.9 million decrease in depreciation expense in 2005, and in lower interest on debt expense due to the elimination of certain debt, which resulted in a $19.6 million decrease in interest on debt expense in 2005. Other than the corresponding effect on income from continuing operations before income taxes and net income, the 2005 Acquisition did not materially impact any of the other line items in our consolidated income statement in 2005. We have included a reconciliation of our 2005 aggregate period results to our consolidated income statements prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP in the table below:
|
AerCap B.V. |
AerCap Holdings N.V. |
Aggregate non-GAAP |
|||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Six months ended June 30, 2005 |
Six months ended December 31, 2005 |
Year ended December 31, 2005 |
|||||||
|
(US dollars in millions) |
|||||||||
Revenues | ||||||||||
Lease revenue | $ | 162.2 | $ | 173.6 | $ | 335.8 | ||||
Sales revenues | 75.8 | 12.5 | 88.3 | |||||||
Management fee revenue | 6.5 | 7.7 | 14.2 | |||||||
Interest revenue | 13.1 | 20.3 | 33.4 | |||||||
Other revenue | 3.5 | 1.0 | 4.5 | |||||||
Total revenue | 261.1 | 215.1 | 476.2 | |||||||
Expenses | ||||||||||
Depreciation | 66.4 | 45.9 | 112.3 | |||||||
Cost of goods sold | 57.6 | 10.6 | 68.2 | |||||||
Interest on debt | 69.9 | 44.7 | 114.6 | |||||||
Other operating expenses | 32.4 | 26.6 | 59.0 | |||||||
Selling, general and administrative expenses | 19.6 | 26.9 | 46.5 | |||||||
Total expenses | 245.9 | 154.7 | 400.6 | |||||||
Income from continuing operations before income taxes | 15.2 | 60.4 | 75.6 | |||||||
Provisions for income taxes | 0.6 | (10.6 | ) | (10.0 | ) | |||||
Net income | $ | 15.8 | $ | 49.8 | $ | 65.6 | ||||
The aggregation of the results of operations data for 2005 is not in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Since AerCap Holdings N.V. is a different reporting entity for accounting purposes from AerCap B.V., the aggregated information should be considered as supplemental information only. The financial information presented for this combined period reflects the addition, with no adjustments, of the results
72
of AerCap B.V. for the six months ended June 30, 2005 and the results of AerCap Holdings N.V. for the initial accounting period ended December 31, 2005.
Revenues. Our total revenues increased by $85.3 million, or 21.8%, from $390.9 million in 2004 to $476.2 million in 2005. The principal categories of our revenue and their year over year variances were:
|
Year ended December 31, 2004 |
Year ended December 31, 2005 |
Increase/ (decrease) |
Percentage Difference |
||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
(US dollars in millions) |
|||||||||||
Lease revenue | $ | 308.5 | $ | 335.8 | $ | 27.3 | 8.8 | % | ||||
Sales revenue | 32.1 | 88.3 | 56.2 | 175.1 | % | |||||||
Management fee revenue | 15.0 | 14.2 | (0.8 | ) | (5.3 | )% | ||||||
Interest revenue | 21.6 | 33.4 | 11.8 | 54.6 | % | |||||||
Other revenue | 13.7 | 4.5 | (9.2 | ) | (67.2 | )% | ||||||
Total | $ | 390.9 | $ | 476.2 | $ | 85.3 | 21.8 | % | ||||
The increase in lease revenue was attributable primarily to:
partially offset by:
The increase in sales revenue to $88.3 million in 2005 from $32.1 million in 2004 reflects an increase in the number of aircraft sold in 2005 (21 aircraft) as compared to those sold in 2004 (nine aircraft). The average sales price per aircraft in 2005 was $4.2 million compared to $3.5 million in 2004. The number of aircraft sold in 2005 increased as our management decided to take advantage of favorable market conditions by selling some of our older, less desirable aircraft, including 16 of our Fokker aircraft.
Management fee revenue decreased slightly between 2004 and 2005 primarily because of a reduction in AerCo fees due to lower AerCo cash flows. In 2005, we generated 39.2% of our management fee revenue from Airplanes Group and 34.9% of our management fee revenue from AerCo. In 2004, we generated 39.0% of our management fee revenue from Airplanes Group and 36.0% of our management fee revenue from AerCo.
The increase in interest revenue in 2005 compared with 2004 was due to:
73
interest rates to 2.41% in 2005 from 1.09% in 2004 on those balances, which resulted in a $4.1 million increase in interest revenue; and
The decrease in other revenue primarily reflects the net gain on sale of a claim which we sold in 2004, which originated from the bankruptcy of one of our lessees. The gain recognized was $8.2 million. We recognized a gain on the sale of our AerCo Series D notes in 2005 of $4.6 million and a similar amount of other revenue in 2004 from penalty fees received from a lessee in connection with a lease restructuring.
Depreciation. Depreciation decreased by $13.6 million, or 10.8%, to $112.3 million in 2005 from $125.9 million in 2004 due primarily to the reduction of our asset values in connection with the 2005 Acquisition. The decrease was partially offset by an increase in depreciation related to increased aggregate book values of our assets resulting from the acquisition of six new aircraft with a net book value of $250.3 million and the sale of 19 aircraft (18 of which were older aircraft) with an aggregate net book value of $67.4 million during 2005.
Cost of Goods Sold. The increase in cost of goods sold in 2005 reflected the increase in the number of aircraft sold to 21 with an average carrying value of $3.2 million in 2005 from nine with an average carrying value of $2.1 million in 2004.
Interest on Debt. Our interest on debt increased by $1.5 million, or 1.3%, to $114.6 million in 2005 from $113.1 million in 2004. Our interest on debt expense was principally affected by:
largely offset by:
Our average outstanding indebtedness declined primarily due to the 2005 Acquisition. This decrease as a result of the 2005 Acquisition was only partially offset by our incurrence of $1.0 billion of indebtedness to pay a portion of the 2005 Acquisition purchase price and $221.0 million of indebtedness which was incurred in connection with the acquisition of new aircraft in 2005.
Impairments. In 2004, we recorded a $132.4 million impairment for all of our existing goodwill as a result of our annual goodwill impairment test described in "Factors Affecting the Comparability of our ResultsGoodwill Impairment". In addition, we recorded an impairment on investments of $2.3 million in 2004. We did not record any impairments in 2005.
Other Operating Expenses. Our other operating expenses decreased by $9.9 million, or 14.4%, to $59.0 million in 2005 from $68.8 million in 2004. The principal categories of our other operating expenses and their year over year variances were as follows:
|
2004 |
2005 |
Increase/ (decrease) |
Percentage Difference |
||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
(US dollars in millions) |
|||||||||||
Operating lease in costs | $ | 35.8 | $ | 25.3 | $ | (10.5 | ) | (29.3 | )% | |||
Leasing expenses | 32.5 | 27.5 | (5.0 | ) | (15.4 | )% | ||||||
Provision for doubtful notes and accounts receivable | 0.6 | 6.2 | 5.6 | 933.3 | % | |||||||
Total | $ | 68.9 | $ | 59.0 | $ | (9.9 | ) | (14.4 | )% | |||
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Our operating lease-in costs decreased due primarily to the repurchase of an aircraft previously leased-in and the termination of our lease obligation to the prior legal owner of the aircraft and an amendment to the lease on one of our other leased in aircraft which lowered our lease obligations.
Our leasing expenses decreased in 2005 primarily because we incurred lower maintenance expenses due to fewer lessee defaults than in 2004. Leasing expenses in 2004 reflected lease transition costs totaling $7.2 million related to the transition of six A320 aircraft, which we had repossessed in 2003, from two defaulting lessees to new lessees.
Our provision for doubtful notes and accounts receivable was lower in 2004 when compared to 2005 due to the collection in 2004 of $9.5 million of receivables for which we had previously taken a reserve.
Selling, General and Administrative Expenses. Our selling, general and administrative expenses increased by $10.1 million, or 27.7%, to $46.5 million in 2005 from $36.4 million in 2004, due primarily to increased personnel costs of $5.1 million in 2005 mainly arising from the hiring of new employees, an increase in professional fees of $1.9 million and an increase in foreign exchange losses of $3.9 million in 2005. We recognized an increase in net foreign exchange losses between 2004 and 2005 as a result of losses on our mark-to-market foreign exchange hedges, which are used to partially hedge our euro expense against changes in the euro/US dollar exchange rate.
Income From Continuing Operations Before Income Taxes and Minority Interests. For the reasons explained above, our income from continuing operations before income taxes and minority interests increased by $182.7 million to an income from continuing operations before income taxes and minority interests of $75.6 million in 2005 from a loss on income from continuing operations before income taxes and minority interests of $107.1 million in 2004.
Provision for Income Taxes. Our provision for income taxes increased by $10.2 million to $10.0 million in 2005 from $(0.2) million in 2004 primarily due to our increased income from continuing operations before income taxes and minority interests. The effect of our increase in income from continuing operations before income taxes and minority interests was partially offset by a decrease in our average effective tax rate below the statutory tax rates as a result of the effects of the 2005 Acquisition structure described above and the reduction in non taxable permanent differences between our U.S. GAAP income from continuing operations before income taxes and minority interests and taxable income. In 2004, we had a net tax charge despite recording a net loss primarily as a result of the goodwill impairment charge of $132.4 million which was not tax deductible in The Netherlands. Our 2005 tax rate was reduced below the average enacted tax rates in the relevant jurisdictions producing income in that year because we were able to deduct interest expenses in The Netherlands on AerCap B.V.'s debts to its parent, AerCap Holdings N.V. while the corresponding interest income for AerCap Holdings N.V. was not subject to taxes in any jurisdiction.
Net Income. For the reasons explained above, our net income increased by $172.5 million to a net income of $65.6 million in 2005 from a net loss of $106.9 million in 2004.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
We satisfy our liquidity requirements through several sources, including:
Aircraft leasing and trading is a capital intensive business. We believe that our existing cash balance and anticipated future operating cash flows, including proceeds arising from the sale of aircraft,
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engines and parts, will be sufficient to satisfy the operating requirements of our business for the next twelve months. In the longer term, we expect to fund the growth of our business, including the acquisition of aircraft and engines, through internally generated cash flows, the incurrence of bank debt and the issuance of debt and equity securities. For additional information on the availability of funding under our revolving credit facilities see "Indebtedness".
The acquisition of aircraft and engines drives our growth and fuels our long-term need for liquidity. It is our intention to fund future aircraft and engines acquisitions initially through cash flows from our operations, borrowings under credit facilities and government guaranteed debt issuances, and to repay all or a portion of the borrowings from time to time with the net proceeds from a variety of capital market and bank sources, including securitizations and from aircraft and engine sale proceeds. Therefore, our ability to execute our business strategy, particularly the growth of our business, depends to a significant degree on our ability to secure additional financing. Whether we will be able to obtain financing will depend upon a number of factors, such as our historical and expected performance, industry and market trends, the availability of capital and the relative attractiveness of alternative investments. We believe that funds will be available to support our growth strategy. However, future deterioration in our performance or our markets could limit our ability to obtain financing and/or increase our cost of capital, which may negatively affect our ability to raise additional funds and grow our business.
Our liquidity also depends on the ability of our subsidiaries to dividend cash to us. Substantially, all of our owned aircraft are held through special purpose subsidiaries, consolidated joint ventures or finance structures which borrow funds to finance or refinance the aircraft. Most of the commercial bank loans and export credit facility financings restrict the payment of dividends in the event that the borrower is in default under the applicable loan, which can include the failure to meet financial ratios or tests. Our revolving credit facility with a syndicate of banks led by affiliates of UBS Real Estate Securities Inc. permits limited distributions to us by the relevant subsidiary borrower during the first two years provided specified principal payments are made. AeroTurbine's revolving credit facility with a syndicate of banks led by affiliates of Calyon permits distributions to us provided that specified financial ratios are met. The securitization of Aircraft Lease Securitisation allows distributions on the subordinated notes to us after the senior classes of notes are repaid. We believe we are in compliance with the financial covenants in all of our indebtedness. For more information on our indebtedness, see "Indebtedness".
From time to time, we enter into intercompany funding arrangements with our subsidiaries and/or provide capital contributions to them to ensure that our subsidiaries have sufficient liquidity to satisfy their contractual and operational requirements.
Cash Flows
Three months ended March 31, 2007 compared to three months ended March 31, 2006
|
AerCap Holdings N.V. |
||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Three months ended March 31, |
||||||
|
2006 |
2007 |
|||||
|
(US dollars in millions) |
||||||
Net cash flow provided by operating activities | $ | 54.0 | $ | 18.7 | |||
Net cash flow used in investing activities | (77.9 | ) | (119.3 | ) | |||
Net cash flow provided by financing activities | 93.1 | 109.4 |
Cash Flows From Operating Activities. Our cash flows provided by operating activities decreased by $35.3 million to $18.7 million in the three months ended March 31, 2007 from $54.0 million in the three months ended March 31, 2006 primarily due to a one time non-recurring receipt of $20.2 million in the three months ended March 31, 2006 from a lessee as settlement of a receivable that was past due, as well as an increase of $26.9 million in payments related to accounts payable and accrued
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expenses, a $15.5 million increase in selling, general and administrative expenses and a $22.3 million increase in interest expense, partially offset by a $51.8 million increase in lease revenue, in each case in the three months ended March 31, 2007.
Cash Flows Used in Investing Activities. Our cash flows used in investing activities increased by $41.4 million, to cash used in investing activities of $119.3 million in the three months ended March 31, 2007 from cash used in investing activities of $77.9 million in the three months ended March 31, 2006. The reasons for the increase in cash used in investing activities in the three months ended March 31, 2007 was an increase of $29.1 million in net cash used for the purchase of aircraft and intangible lease premiums, net of aircraft sales proceeds and a $14.4 million reduction in the change in restricted cash balances in the three months ended March 31, 2007, compared to the three months ended March 31, 2006 related to the release of restricted cash from our Aircraft Lease Securitisation securitization vehicle and from a lender upon the substitution of letter of credit in the three months ended March 31, 2006.
Cash Flows Provided by Financing Activities. Our cash flows provided by financing activities increased by $16.3 million, to $109.4 million provided by financing activities in the three months ended March 31, 2007 from $93.1 million provided by financing activities in the three months ended March 31, 2006. The principal reason for the increase in cash provided by financing activities in the three months ended March 31, 2007 was an increase of $41.3 million in the amount of net additional financing proceeds, net of debt issuance costs paid, in the three months ended March 31, 2007, compared to the three months ended March 31, 2006, due to the need to finance increases in net aircraft purchases, partially offset by cash received from our joint venture partner in AerVenture of $25.0 million in the three months ended March 31, 2006.
Year ended December 31, 2006 compared to year ended December 31, 2005
|
Aggregate non-GAAP |
AerCap Holdings N.V. |
|||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Year ended December 31, 2005 |
Year ended December 31, 2006 |
|||||
|
(US dollars in millions) |
||||||
Net cash flow provided by operating activities | $ | 216.5 | $ | 348.4 | |||
Net cash flow used in investing activities | (1,416.7 | ) | (843.3 | ) | |||
Net cash flow provided by financing activities | 1,363.5 | 443.6 |
Our cash flows for the year ended December 31, 2005 represent the cash flows for AerCap B.V. from January 1, 2005 to June 30, 2005, when it was owned by our prior shareholders, and the cash flows for AerCap Holdings N.V. from June 27, 2005 (inception of AerCap Holdings C.V.) to December 31, 2005, following the 2005 Acquisition on June 30, 2005. For the period from June 27, 2005 to June 30, 2005, we did not generate any cash flows. The cash flows have been aggregated to provide investors with data for year ended December 31, 2005 on the same basis our management uses to analyze our business results and to provide a basis for comparing our cash flows for the year ended December 31, 2006 to cash flows for prior periods. We have included a reconciliation of the aggregate year ended December 31, 2005 cash flows to the consolidated statements of cash flows prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP in the table below:
|
AerCap B.V. |
AerCap Holdings N.V. |
Aggregate non-GAAP |
|||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Six months ended June 30, 2005 |
Six months ended December 31, 2005 |
Year ended December 31, 2005 |
|||||||
|
(US dollars in millions) |
|||||||||
Net cash flow provided by operating activities | $ | 107.3 | $ | 109.2 | $ | 216.5 | ||||
Net cash flow provided by (used in) investing activities | 14.5 | (1,431.2 | ) | (1,416.7 | ) | |||||
Net cash flow (used in) provided by financing activities | (142.0 | ) | 1,505.5 | 1,363.5 |
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The aggregation of cash flow data for the year ended December 31, 2005 is not in accordance with U.S. GAAP, as AerCap Holdings N.V. is a different reporting entity for accounting purposes from AerCap B.V. and the periods presented are not directly comparable because the cash flow information for the six months ended December 31, 2005 includes the effects of the 2005 Acquisition. The AerCap Holdings N.V. cash flow information for the year ended December 31, 2005 reflects the addition, without adjustment, of the cash flows of AerCap B.V. for the six months ended June 30, 2005 and of AerCap Holdings N.V. for the six months ended December 31, 2005. The aggregated cash flow information should be considered as supplemental information only.
Cash Flows From Operating Activities. Our cash flows provided by operating activities increased by $131.9 million, or 60.9%, to $348.4 million in the year ended December 31, 2006 from $216.5 million in the year ended December 31, 2005. This increase is due primarily to (i) a $71.7 million increase in the change in accounts payable and accrued expenses, including maintenance liabilities and lessee deposits, which was due primarily to the increase in accrued maintenance liabilities and lessee deposits from the purchase of 24 used aircraft, subject to leases, during 2006 and (ii) a $109.5 million increase in net income after giving effect to all non-cash add-backs or deductions to net income on the consolidated statements of cash flows. These increases were partially offset by the use of $24.2 million in the year ended December 31, 2006 for the purchase of inventory, which did not occur in the year ended December 31, 2005 and a $38.6 million decrease in the change to trade and notes receivable, both of which resulted primarily from the inclusion of AeroTurbine's operating results in our consolidated financial statements following the AeroTurbine Acquisition.
Cash Flows Used in Investing Activities. Our cash flows used in investing activities decreased by $573.4 million, or 40.5%, to $843.3 million in the year ended December 31, 2006 from $1,416.7 million in the year ended December 31, 2005. The principal reason for the decrease in cash used in investing activities was the consideration paid in 2005, net of cash acquired, of $1,245.6 million to acquire AerCap B.V., which was partially offset by a $579.4 million, or 412.1% increase in net cash used to buy and sell flight equipment and additional pre-delivery payments made under our aircraft purchase agreement with Airbus to $720.0 million in the year ended December 31, 2006 from $140.6 million in the year ended December 31, 2005.
Cash Flows Provided by Financing Activities. Our cash flows provided by financing activities decreased by $919.9 million, or 67.5%, to $443.6 million in the year ended December 31, 2006 from $1,363.5 million in the year ended December 31, 2005. This decrease in cash flows provided by financing activities was due primarily to (i) a decrease of $696.9 million of borrowings, net of repayments, to $300.4 million in the year ended December 31, 2006 from $997.3 million in the year ended December 31, 2005 which was primarily attributable to the $1,000.0 million term loan contracted in connection with the 2005 Acquisition and (ii) a $261.4 million decrease in the amount of additional equity investments. In the year ended December 31,2005 we received additional equity investments of $405.0 million in connection with the 2005 Acquisition whereas in the year ended December 31, 2006 we received net additional equity investments of $143.6 million related to our initial public offering.
Indebtedness
As of March 31, 2007, our outstanding indebtedness totaled $2.7 billion and primarily consisted of export credit facilities, Japanese operating lease financings, commercial bank debt, revolving credit debt, securitization debt and capital lease structures.
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The following table provides a summary of our indebtedness at March 31, 2007:
Debt Obligation |
Collateral |
Commitment |
Outstanding |
Undrawn amounts |
Weighted average interest rate |
Final stated maturity |
||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
(US dollars in thousands) |
|
|
||||||||||||
Export credit facilitiesguaranteed financings | 17 aircraft | $ | 775,336 | $ | 570,632 | $ | 204,704 | 5.57% | 2007-2019 | |||||||
Japanese operating lease financings | 3 aircraft | 98,328 | 98,328 | | 5.59% | 2007-2015 | ||||||||||
Pre-delivery payment facility | | 118,912 | 19,505 | 99,407 | 6.97% | 2007-2010 | ||||||||||
UBS revolving credit facility(1) | 16 aircraft | 970,000 | 370,117 | 599,883 | 7.81% | 2007-2012 | ||||||||||
AT revolving credit facility | 60 engines | 220,000 | 35,688 | 184,312 | 6.85% | 2007-2011 | ||||||||||
GATX portfolio acquisition facility(2) | 24 aircraft | 210,553 | 210,553 | | 7.07% | 2007-2013 | ||||||||||
Commercial bank debt(3) | 23 aircraft and three engines | 380,547 | 380,547 | | 6.77% | 2007-2019 | ||||||||||
Aircraft Lease Securitisation debt(4) | 42 aircraft | 818,466 | 818,466 | | 6.25% | 2007-2016 | ||||||||||
Capital lease obligations under defeasance structures | 4 aircraft | 162,151 | 162,151 | | 2007-2010 | |||||||||||
Total | $ | 3,754,293 | $ | 2,665,987 | $ | 1,088,306 | ||||||||||
The weighted average interest rate in the table above excludes the impact of related derivative financial instruments, which we hold to hedge our exposure to interest rates. See "Indebtedness" for more information regarding our indebtedness and see "Interest Rate Risk" for more information on our portfolio of derivative financial instruments.
Contractual Obligations
Our contractual obligations consist of principal and interest payments on term debt, executed purchase agreements to purchase aircraft, operating lease rentals on aircraft under lease in/lease out structures and rent payments pursuant to our office leases. We intend to fund our contractual obligations through our lines of credit and other borrowings as well as internally generated cash flows. We believe that our sources of liquidity will be sufficient to meet our contractual obligations.
The following table sets forth our contractual obligations and their maturity dates as of March 31, 2007:
Payments Due By Period as of March 31, 2007(1)
Contractual Obligations |
2007(7) |
2008 to 2010 |
2011 to 2012 |
Thereafter |
Total |
|||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
(U.S. dollars in thousands) |
|||||||||||||||
Debt(2)(3) | $ | 447,880 | $ | 1,145,757 | $ | 756,705 | $ | 1,099,332 | $ | 3,449,674 | ||||||
Purchase obligations(1)(4) | 479,659 | 4,059,442 | 630,397 | | 5,169,498 | |||||||||||
Operating leases(5) | 14,200 | 92,491 | 49,464 | 5,154 | 161,309 | |||||||||||
Derivative obligations | (3,649 | ) | (9,545 | ) | (3,297 | ) | (2,538 | ) | (19,029 | ) | ||||||
Total(6) | $ | 938,090 | $ | 5,288,145 | $ | 1,433,269 | $ | 1,101,948 | $ | 8,761,452 | ||||||
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Capital Expenditures
Our primary capital expenditure is the purchase of aircraft, including pre-delivery payments under our 1999 aircraft purchase agreement with Airbus. The table below sets forth our capital expenditures for the historical periods indicated.
|
Year ended December 31, |
|
||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Three months ended March 31, 2007 |
|||||||||||
|
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
|||||||||
|
(US dollars in thousands) |
|||||||||||
Capital expenditures | $ | 313,213 | $ | 198,870 | $ | 879,497 | $ | 223,585 | ||||
Pre-delivery payments | 33,366 | 46,315 | 93,708 | 18,650 |
In 2004, our principal capital expenditures were for five A320 aircraft, three A321 aircraft, one MD-11F aircraft which we previously leased-in under an operating lease and pre-delivery payments for nine aircraft. In 2005, our principal capital expenditures were for five A320 aircraft and one A319 aircraft and pre-delivery payments for 12 aircraft. In 2006, our principal capital expenditures were for three A319 and three A320 aircraft delivered under our 1999 forward order agreement and 17 A320s, one A319, three 737-700/800s, six 737-300/400s, four 757s and one 767 purchased in portfolio or single aircraft purchase transactions.
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The table below sets forth our expected capital expenditures for future periods indicated based on contracted commitments as of March 31, 2007.
|
2007(1) |
2008 |
2009 |
2010 |
2011 |
2012 |
Total |
||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
(US dollars in thousands) |
||||||||||||||||||||
Capital expenditures(2) | $ | 340,250 | $ | 402,965 | $ | 1,212,743 | $ | 1,440,234 | $ | 194,127 | $ | 298,491 | $ | 3,888,810 | |||||||
Pre-delivery payments(2) | 139,409 | 383,645 | 419,825 | 200,030 | 126,051 | 11,728 | 1,280,688 | ||||||||||||||
Total | $ | 479,659 | $ | 786,610 | $ | 1,632,568 | $ | 1,640,264 | $ | 320,178 | $ | 310,219 | $ | 5,169,498 | |||||||
In the nine month period ended December 31, 2007, we expect to make capital expenditures related to final delivery payments on five A320 family aircraft under our 1999 Airbus purchase contract. We expect to make capital expenditures related to the 47 A320 aircraft and 23 A319 aircraft on order by AerVenture between 2007 and 2010 and expect to make capital expenditures related to the 30 A330 aircraft on order between 2008 and 2012. As we implement our growth strategy and expand our aircraft and engine portfolio, we expect our capital expenditures to increase in the future. We anticipate that we will fund these capital expenditures through internally generated cash flows, draw downs on our committed revolving credit facilities and the incurrence of bank debt, and other debt and equity issuances.
Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements
We are obligated to make sublease payments under seven aircraft operating leases of aircraft which mature between 2009 and 2012. We lease these seven aircraft to aircraft operators. Since we are not fully exposed to the risks and rewards of ownership of these aircraft, we do not include these aircraft on our balance sheet. In addition, we do not recognize a financial liability for our operating lease obligations under the leases on our balance sheet. Due to the fact that sublease receipts related to these seven aircraft are insufficient to cover our lease obligations, we have recognized an onerous contract accrual on our balance sheet which is equal to the difference between the present value of the lease expenses and the present value of the sublease income discounted at appropriate discount rates. This accounting treatment, however, does not result in the same presentation as if we accounted for these aircraft as owned assets and the related operating lease obligations as debt liabilities. See Note 16 to our audited consolidated financial statements contained in this prospectus.
We continue to have an economic interest in AerCo. This interest is not assigned any value on our balance sheet because we do not expect to realize any value for our investment.
We have other investments in companies or ventures in the airline industry which we obtain primarily through restructurings in our leasing business. The value of these investments are immaterial to our financial position. We do not consolidate such companies on our balance sheet because the investments do not meet the requirements for consolidation.
As discussed above, we have entered into two joint ventures (Annabel and AerDragon), that do not qualify for consolidated accounting treatment. The assets and liabilities of these joint ventures will
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be off our balance sheet and we record only our net investment under the equity method of accounting.
Related Party Transactions
The following is a summary of material provisions of various transactions we have entered into with related parties since January 1, 2004.
Related Party Transactions with Current Affiliates
AerCo is an aircraft securitization vehicle in which we hold all of the most junior class of subordinated notes and some notes immediately senior to those junior notes. We do not recognize value for the AerCo notes which we hold on our consolidated balance sheets. Through March 2003 we consolidated AerCo, but we deconsolidated the vehicle in accordance with FIN 46 at that time. Subsequent to the deconsolidation of AerCo, we have received interest from AerCo on our D note investment of $8.5 million, $1.7 million, $0.8 million, $1.7 million and $0.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2004, the six months ended June 30, 2005, the period from June 27, 2005 to December 31, 2005, for the year ended December 31, 2006 and the three months ended March 31, 2007, respectively. In addition, we provide a variety of management services to AerCo for which we received fees of $5.4 million, $2.4 million, $2.4 million, $5.2 million and $1.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2004, the six months ended June 30, 2005, the period from June 27, 2005 to December 31, 2005, the year ended December 31, 2006 and the three months ended March 31, 2007, respectively.
We have made payments to Cerberus and third parties on behalf of Cerberus totaling approximately $1.2 million since the 2005 Acquisition through March 31, 2007. The payments to Cerberus represent reimbursement of consulting fees paid by Cerberus to individuals who have assisted us in the evaluation of our aircraft portfolio or company purchases, including our AeroTurbine Acquisition. In addition, this amount also includes approximately $0.2 million of reimbursements for consulting services incurred by Cerberus in connection with Cerberus's evaluation of the 2005 Acquisition. If we accept services from individuals employed by or contracted through Cerberus in the future, we expect these arrangements to reflect arms'-length negotiations that will not be more favorable than the terms we could negotiate with an independent party. Payments to third parties on behalf of Cerberus consisted of payments to advisors engaged by Cerberus in connection with the 2005 Acquisition.
We lease two A321-200 aircraft to Air Canada. Both leases expire in 2014. Cerberus indirectly controls 11% of the equity of Air Canada as from September 30, 2004 and has a majority equity interest in AerCap Holdings N.V. as from June 30, 2005.
In February 2006, we entered into a guarantee arrangement with DvB Bank AG and Aozora Bank Limited, an entity that is majority owned by Cerberus. In addition, Pieter Korteweg, the Chairman of our Board of Directors, and Marius Jacques Leonard Jonkhart, a non executive director, are also on the board of directors of Aozora Bank. The guarantee supports certain of our obligations to a Japanese operating lessor of up to $13.8 million in connection with a JOL financing. The Japanese operating lessor required the guarantee as additional credit support following the 2005 Acquisition. We leased the A320 aircraft from the Japanese operating lessor under a lease and then subleased the aircraft to an aircraft operator. In the event we fail to make certain payments related to JOL financing, DvB Bank will make the payment on our behalf but will be reimbursed by Aozora Bank for any payments made. We have agreed to indemnify Aozora Bank for any payments it makes under the guarantee arrangement. The guarantee expires in February 2008. Under the terms of the guarantee arrangement,
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we are required to provide cash collateral to Aozora Bank if we breach certain financial covenants. Currently we are not in breach of any of these covenants and have not provided any cash collateral. In connection with the guarantee arrangement, we pay Aozora Bank a guarantee fee of 4.1% per annum of the amount guaranteed and have provided Aozora Bank with a second priority share pledge over the shares of the entity that entered into the financing with the Japanese operating lessor.
In April 2006, we entered into a senior secured revolving credit facility in the aggregate amount of up to $1.0 billion with UBS Real Estate Securities Inc., UBS Securities LLC., Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas and certain other financial institutions. Aozora Bank is a syndicate member under the facility and participated in up to $50.0 million of the Class A loans and up to $25.0 million of the Class B loans issued thereunder, representing 7.0% of the Class A loans and 13.9% of the Class B loans. As of March 31, 2007, we had drawn and there remained outstanding $283.8 million of the Class A loans and $53.6 million of the Class B loans.
We lease our office and warehouse located in Miami, Florida from an entity owned by the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer of AeroTurbine. The lease for this facility expires on December 31, 2013. The lease rental was adjusted to reflect current market rates on January 2007.
In 2004, we entered into leases for six A320 aircraft with WizzAir Hungary Limited. As part of a subsequent restructuring of amounts outstanding, WizzAir agreed to issue us shares representing 17.4% of their equity as of November 2004. In 2005, we agreed with WizzAir's other shareholders and creditors to enter into a Shareholders' and Noteholders' Agreement under which we agreed to convert trade receivables into an unsecured, non amortizing € 7.8 million note, convertible into approximately 26% of WizzAir's outstanding shares on a fully diluted basis as of February 2005). Under the terms of the Shareholders' and Noteholders' Agreement we were able to appoint a director of WizzAir between February 2005 and June 2005. The convertible notes were carried on our balance sheet at December 31, 2005 at $1.8 million. We sold all of our WizzAir convertible notes in September 2006.
In January 2007, we entered into a letter of intent for the sale of two A320 aircraft to our joint venture, AerDragon. In February 2007, one of the aircraft, which was subject to a lease to Juneyao Airlines, was sold to AerDragon. The sale of the second A320, which is subject to a lease to Bangkok Airlines, is expected to be finalized in August 2007. The sale prices for these aircraft, which includes the transfer to AerDragon of the ECA-guaranteed debt relating to the aircraft which we will continue to guarantee, reflect arms-length negotiations that we believe are not more favorable than the terms that we would be able to achieve from an independent third party.
From time to time, we negotiate aircraft and engine purchase and sale transactions with affiliates of Cerberus, and may enter into such transactions in the future. We expect the terms and conditions of such transactions to be reasonable and customary for the type of transaction.
Related Party Transactions with Affiliates of our Prior Shareholders
Until the 2005 Acquisition, our previous shareholder lenders had provided us with subordinated loans for a total of $350.6 million as of December 31, 2004. The interest rates on these loans were variable and were calculated on the basis of six-month LIBOR. Interest of $10.9 million and $7.4 million was included in interest on indebtedness for the year ended December 31, 2004 and the six months ended June 30, 2005, respectively. These loans were acquired in connection with the 2005 Acquisition by AerCap Holdings C.V. and are eliminated in consolidation in our consolidated financial statements.
Our previous shareholder lenders also participated in our senior credit agreements prior to the 2005 Acquisition. A total of $1,516.6 million was outstanding under these credit agreements as of
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December 31, 2004. The interest rate on the credit facility is variable and is calculated on the basis of LIBOR. Interest on the senior debt of $61.6 million and $34.8 million was included in interest on debt for the year ended December 31, 2004 and for the six months ended June 30, 2005, respectively.
Wings is a wholly-owned subsidiary of DASA, who is wholly-owned by one of our previous shareholder lenders. We provide aircraft lease management and remarketing services to Wings for which we received fees of $1.6 million and $0.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2004 and the six months ended June 30, 2005, after which Wings was no longer a related party due to the sale of our shares by our previous shareholder lenders.
Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
Our primary market risk exposure is interest rate risk associated with short and long-term borrowings bearing variable interest rates and lease payments under leases tied to floating interest rates. To manage this interest rate exposure, we enter into interest rate swap and cap agreements. We are also exposed to foreign currency risk, which can adversely affect our operating profits. To manage this risk, we enter into forward exchange contracts.
The following discussion should be read in conjunction with Notes 1, 2 and 11 to our audited consolidated financial statements contained in this prospectus, which provide further information on our derivative instruments contained in this prospectus.
Interest Rate Risk
The rentals we receive under our leases are based on fixed and variable interest rates. We fund our operations with a mixture of fixed and floating rate U.S. dollar denominated debt and finance lease obligations. An interest rate exposure arises to the extent that the mix of these obligations are not matched with our assets. This exposure is primarily managed through the use of interest rate caps and interest rate swaps using a cash flow based risk management model. This model takes the expected cash flows generated by our assets and liabilities and then calculates by how much the value of these cash flows will change for a given movement in interest rates. Our policy is to seek to ensure that the net worth of our business will not be exposed to more than a $15 million movement from a 1% parallel shift in US dollar interest rates across the yield curve.
Under our interest rate swaps, we pay fixed amounts and receive floating amounts on a monthly basis. The caps and swaps amortize based on a number of factors, including the expiration dates of the leases under which our lessees are contracted to make fixed rate rental payments and the three or six month LIBOR reset dates under our floating rate leases. Under our interest rate caps, we will receive the excess, if any, of LIBOR, reset monthly or quarterly on an actual/360 adjusted basis, over the strike rate of the relevant cap.
The table below provides information as of March 31, 2007 regarding our derivative financial instruments that are sensitive to changes in interest rates on our borrowing, including our interest rate swaps and caps. The table presents the initial notional amounts and weighted average interest rates by contracted maturity dates. Notional amounts are used to calculate the contractual payments to be
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exchanged under the contract. Weighted average variable rates are based on implied forward rates in the yield curve at the applicable date.
|
2007 |
2008 |
2009 |
2010 |
2011 |
Thereafter |
Total |
Fair value |
||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
(US dollars in thousands) |
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Interest rate caps | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Notional amounts | $ | 75,000 | $ | 575,000 | $ | 575,000 | $ | 355,000 | $ | 260,000 | $ | 776,000 | $ | 2,616,000 | $ | 18,751 | ||||||||
Weighted average strike rate(1) | 4.90% | 5.59% | 5.04% | 5.05% | 5.63% | 5.42% | 5.33% | |||||||||||||||||
Interest rate swaps |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Notional amounts | $ | | $ | 60,000 | $ | | $ | | $ | | $ | | $ | 60,000 | $ | 277 | ||||||||
Weighted average pay rate | | 5.38% | | | | | 5.38% | |||||||||||||||||
Weighted average receive rate | | 5.35% | | | | | 5.35% |
As of March 31, 2007, the interest rate swaps and caps had notional amounts of $2.7 billion and a fair value of $19.0 million. The variable benchmark interest rates associated with these instruments ranged from one to six month LIBOR.
Our Board of Directors is responsible for reviewing and approving our overall interest rate management policies and transaction authority limits. Specific hedging contracts are approved by the treasury committee acting within the overall policies and limits. Our counterparty risk is monitored on an ongoing basis, but is mitigated by the fact that all of our interest rate derivatives, except Aircraft Lease Securitisation's derivatives, require two-way cash collateralization. Our counterparties are subject to the prior approval of the treasury committee.
Foreign Currency Risk and Foreign Operations
Our functional currency is the U.S. dollar. As of March 31, 2007, all of our aircraft leases and all of our engine leases were payable in U.S. dollars. We incur Euro-denominated expenses in connection with our offices in The Netherlands and Ireland. For the year ended December 31, 2006, our aggregate expenses denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar, such as payroll and office costs and professional advisory costs, were $38.0 million in U.S. dollar equivalents and represented 25.5% of total selling, general and administrative expenses. We enter into foreign exchange contracts based on our projected exposure to foreign currency risks in order to protect ourselves from the effect of period over period exchange rate fluctuations. Mark-to-market gains or losses on such contracts are recorded as part of selling, general and administrative expenses since most of our non-U.S. denominated payments relate to such expenses. Since we currently receive substantially all of our revenues in U.S. dollars and we hedge a material portion of our non-dollar denominated expenditures, we do not believe that a change in foreign exchange rates will have material impact on our results of operations. However, the portion of our business conducted in foreign currencies could increase in the future, which could increase our exposure to losses arising from currency fluctuations.
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Inflation
Inflation generally affects our costs, including selling, general and administrative expenses and other expenses. However, we do not believe that our financial results have been, or will be, adversely affected by inflation in a material way.
Other Contingencies
VASP Litigation
We leased 13 aircraft and three spare engines to Viacao Aerea de Sao Paulo, or VASP, a Brazilian airline. In 1992, VASP defaulted on its lease obligations and we commenced litigation against VASP to repossess our aircraft. In 1992, we obtained a preliminary injunction for the repossession and export of 13 aircraft and three spare engines from VASP. We repossessed and exported the aircraft and engines in 1992. VASP appealed this decision. In 1996, the High Court of the State of Sao Paulo ruled in favor of VASP on its appeal. We were instructed to return the aircraft and engines to VASP for lease under the terms of the original lease agreements. The High Court also granted VASP the right to seek damages in lieu of the return of the aircraft and engines. Since 1996 we have pursued this case in the Brazilian courts through various motions and appeals. On March 1, 2006, the Superior Court of Justice dismissed our most recent appeal and on April 5, 2006 a special panel of the Superior Court of Justice confirmed the Superior Court of Justice decision. On May 15, 2006 we appealed this decision to the Federal Supreme Court. On February 23, 2006, VASP commenced a procedure for the calculation of the award for damages and has appointed an expert to assist the court in calculating damages. Both we and VASP have the right to appoint our own expert to assist the court appointed expert in this process. Our external legal counsel has advised us that even if we lose on the merits, they do not believe that VASP will be able to demonstrate any damages. We continue to actively pursue all courses of action that may be available to us and intend to defend our position vigorously.
We are currently pursuing claims for damages in the English courts against VASP based on the damages we incurred as a result of the default by VASP on its lease obligations. In October 2006, the English Courts approved our motion to serve process upon VASP in Brazil. VASP will be served process in Brazil, by means of a rogatory letter which is currently being processed before the Brazilian Superior Court of Justice. Our management, based on the advice of external legal counsel, has determined that it is not necessary to make any provisions for this litigation.
Swedish Tax Dispute
In 2001, Swedish tax authorities challenged the position we took in tax returns we filed for the years 1999 and 2000 with respect to certain deductions. In accordance with Swedish law, we made a guaranty payment to the tax authority of $16.8 million in 2003. We appealed the decision of the tax authorities, and, in August 2004, a Swedish Court issued a ruling in our favor, which resulted in a tax refund of $19.9 million (which included interest and the effect of foreign exchange movements for the intervening period). In September 2004, the Swedish tax authorities appealed the decision of the Court and filed an appeal with the Administrative Court of Appeal in Sweden. We have responded to this appeal and have requested an oral hearing on the matter. The Court has responded that it will schedule an oral hearing, but we have not yet received a notice of the timing of such hearing. Our management, based on the advice of our tax advisors, has determined that it is not necessary to make any provisions for this tax dispute.
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Recent Accounting Pronouncements
In September 2006, the FASB issued SFAS No. 157, "Fair Value Measurements''. SFAS 157 prescribes a single definition of fair value as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. SFAS 157 is effective for us beginning as of January 1, 2008. We do not anticipate that the adoption of SFAS 157 will have a material effect on our financial statements or our results of operations.
In February 2007, the FASB issued Statement No. 159, The Fair Value Option for Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities (FAS 159). This statement, which is expected to expand fair value measurement, permits entities to choose to measure many financial instruments and certain other items at fair value. FAS 159 is effective for us beginning in the first quarter of 2008. We are currently assessing the impact FAS 159 may have on our consolidated financial statements.
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AIRCRAFT, ENGINE AND AVIATION PARTS INDUSTRY
Introduction
The information and data contained in this prospectus relating to the commercial aircraft industry has been provided by Simat, Helliesen & Eichner, Inc. ("SH&E"), an international air transport consulting firm, relied upon as an expert. See "Experts". SH&E has advised us that this information is drawn from its database and other sources and that: some information in SH&E's database is derived from estimates or subjective judgments; the information in the databases of other commercial aircraft data collection agencies may differ from the information in SH&E's database; and although SH&E has taken reasonable care in the compilation of the statistical and graphical information and believes it to be accurate and correct, data compilation is subject to limited audit and validation procedures, and may accordingly contain errors. The historical and projected information in this prospectus relating to the aircraft, engine and aviation parts industry that is not attributed to a specific source is derived from SH&E's internal analyses, estimates and subjective judgments.
Executive Summary
The business of owning leasing and trading aircraft, engines and parts is influenced by several key industry drivers, including demand for air travel and aircraft and engine fleet development. Key trends in the industry include:
Industry Overview
Aircraft demand derives from the demand for passenger and cargo air transport. The demand for air transport is closely tied to economic activity and has historically grown at around 1.5 to 2.0 times the long-term growth rate in gross domestic product. The translation of passenger and cargo traffic demand into demand for aircraft units is impacted by a number of factors as airlines attempt to optimize their fleets for particular network structures and demand patterns.
Over the past five years, a series of shocks outside the industry, including the terrorist attacks in the United States of September 11, 2001, global economic recession, military actions in the Middle East, health concerns, surging fuel costs and several natural disasters have affected the demand for air transport in different regions of the world. Despite these challenges, the global economy has expanded
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rapidly since 2002, driving sustained growth in worldwide travel demand and leading to positive global airline operating profits since 2004. Presently, the global airline industry continues to experience a cyclical upswing and as a result of these positive economic trends, the International Air Transport Association's ("IATA") April 2007 forecast predicts airline industry operating profits of $13.9 billion in 2007 and $19.9 billion in 2008.
Historical and Forecast World Traffic (RPMs) and GDP Growth
Source: Airline Monitor, January-February 2007 and International Monetary Fund ("IMF") World Economic Outlook, September 2006
According to Airline Monitor, between 1991 and 2006, global passenger traffic measured in Revenue Passenger Miles ("RPM"), the measure of passenger demand representing each mile each passenger is carried, increased by nearly 135%, or an average rate of 5.9% per year, reaching 2,635 billion RPMs in 2006. Available Seat Miles ("ASM"), the primary measure of capacity representing each mile each seat is carried whether the seat is occupied or not, have grown at an average rate of 4.8% per year for the same period, amounting to 3,480 billion ASMs in 2006. Between 1995 and 2005, air cargo traffic has grown at an average rate of 5.1% per annum, from 67 billion Revenue Ton Miles ("RTM"), the most common measure of air cargo demand, representing each mile each ton of cargo is transported, to 111 billion RTMs.
The Airline Monitor, a respected industry forecaster, projects 5.2% annual growth in passenger traffic and 5.0% annual growth in seat capacity for the next 10 years. This forecast is consistent with other industry forecasts. The Airbus 2006 Global Market Forecast predicts that air travel demand will continue to grow an average of 4.8% per year through 2025 and the Boeing 2006 Commercial Market Outlook projects 4.9% annual growth in traffic for the next 20 years. Air cargo demand globally is expected to grow even faster than passenger demand. For the next 20 years Airbus and Boeing forecast annual growth of 6% and 6.1%, respectively.
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Historical Traffic Growth by Carrier Region (RPM)
Source: 1998-2005 Airline Business and latest 2006 data based on IATA estimates
Passenger demand in North America, Europe and Latin America rebounded strongly from 2001 lows, while traffic in Asia, Africa and the Middle East, regions that are less dependent than Europe or Latin America on the U.S. market, have experienced steady growth since 1998. Today, air travel is rapidly becoming a more accessible alternative to land transportation for a growing proportion of the world's population, especially in high-growth emerging markets.
Drivers of Aircraft Demand
The world fleet is expected to grow steadily as airlines continue to develop service offerings that accommodate the world's rapidly growing travel demand. Key elements that are currently driving growth in demand for both new and used aircraft include:
Market Growth & Liberalization
Emerging markets, especially those with large populations distributed over a broad geographic area, tend to have very small commercial passenger jet aircraft fleets relative to total population size. Their low aircraft to population ratios, which are generally less than one-tenth the ratio of the U.S. aircraft-to-population ratio, highlight the growth potential in these markets. According to Aircraft Analytical System ("ACAS") fleet data and International Monetary Fund ("IMF") population figures, for every one million people in North America, there are approximately 26 aircraft in the current fleet. In contrast, India, Russia and China have approximately one or fewer aircraft per million of population.
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Current Aircraft Fleet to Population Ratio by Region
Source: ACAS, IMF, SH&E Analysis
If per capita incomes in these emerging economies continue to rise and regulatory restrictions continue to be relaxed, it is reasonable to expect the fleet size of these markets to increase substantially in the next decade. Prospects for specific emerging market regions are discussed in more detail in the regional aircraft demand discussion below. While the mature intra-European and intra-North American markets exhibit lower growth rates, the absolute demand for aircraft units is expected to remain high given the large existing traffic base in these regions.
Furthermore, continued liberalization of air travel is also expected to fuel demand for additional aircraft. Many countries are continuing to enter into new bilateral agreements or "open-skies" accords that will further liberalize international air travel and continue to create opportunities for new flights, new routes and new operators. In March 2007, the U.S. and the European Union agreed to a long-awaited open skies accord that will commence in March 2008 and will spur significant new route service opportunities. The primary element of the accord allows carriers based in the 27 European Union member states to fly from any European Union city to any U.S. city, while U.S. carriers will have the right to fly to any European Union airport, including London Heathrow. Continental has already made clear its expectations to open new Houston-London Heathrow and Cleveland-Paris routes, and other carriers are also providing indications of new services that will be offered. This is an example of why further liberalization is expected to drive demand for long-range mid-size aircraft, as international travel spreads to mid-sized cities between major global regions and will enable carriers to meet traffic demand growth more effectively on North Atlantic, Trans-Pacific and Europe-Asia routes. Aircraft such as the Boeing 777 and 767, the Airbus A330 and eventually the Boeing 787 and Airbus A350 are the aircraft types best positioned to take advantage of fragmenting long-haul markets.
Critically, the current round of liberalization has extended to encourage the launch of new, low-fare carriers in emerging market countries, where robust economic growth faces pent-up demand for air travel. In the past two years alone, six new airlines were launched in Mexico (InterJet, Avolar,
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Volaris, ALMA, vivaAeroBus, Aladia), six new airlines were announced in India (SpiceJet, Kingfisher, GoAir, IndiGo Airlines, Indus Airways, Paramount), three new airlines were launched in the former socialist countries of Central Europe (Centavia, Central Connect, Direct Fly), and two new airlines were launched in Thailand (NOK Air, Thai Sky Airlines). If sustained, ongoing rapid economic development in emerging markets is expected to continue to fuel demand for new aircraft, including narrowbody aircraft, for many years to come. This expansion is expected to drive continued demand for efficient narrowbody aircraft such as the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320, as untapped domestic markets of China, India, Brazil and Mexico continue to develop.
Low Cost Carriers
The increasing presence of LCCs across the world is generating additional demand for aircraft by creating new markets, and stimulating traffic demand with low fares. Given the importance of high asset utilization and service frequency, LCC fleet growth has predominantly focused on efficient and reliable narrowbody aircraft such as the Airbus A320 and the Boeing 737.
LCCs have existed since the early 1970s, when Southwest Airlines began service in the United States. Although much of the early growth was in North America, the LCC presence has strengthened in other world markets, particularly Europe. In Great Britain, Ireland and parts of Western Europe, LCCs now represent a larger proportion of intra-regional capacity than their peers in North America. According to the Official Airline Guide ("OAG"), LCCs accounted for 25.4% of intra-regional seat departures in Europe versus the 28.9% of U.S. domestic seat departures accounted for by U.S.-based LCCs. The continued enlargement of the European Union is extending the fully liberalized European marketplace and opening new markets to LCC expansion. As a result, LCCs such as Wizz Air, Sky Europe, Centralwings and Air Berlin are exerting competitive pressure on state-owned legacy carriers, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe.
While still far behind the levels seen in North America and Europe, LCC penetration in other regions is also growing significantly. LCC capacity share in Latin America has risen due to the success of Gol Transportes Aereos in Brazil and to a new expansion of Mexican carriers. Meanwhile, Southeast Asia and Australia have seen significant penetration by LCCs, including Air Asia and Tiger Airways, which are now spreading to other parts of the Pacific region. In addition to the successful entry of LCCs into the Southeast Asian and Australian markets, the new frontiers for LCC expansion in Asia are likely to be India and China. India, with its very large population and high number of urban population centers, is poised for growth. As the Indian economy grows, it is expected that the country's accompanying air traffic expansion will be met by increased capacity on the part of existing and new start-up LCCs. Recently, LCCs have been expanding into the long-haul air service market, reflected by recent long-haul aircraft order discussions by Jetstar, Air Asia X, Virgin Blue and the start-up operation of Oasis Hong Kong.
Global and Regional Demand Growth
The world aircraft fleet has more than doubled over the last 20 years and its composition is gradually shifting from North American dominance to a more balanced distribution between regions. Of the aircraft in the 2006 world aircraft fleet, approximately 23.0% are widebodies, 60% narrowbodies, and 17.0% regional jets.
Historically, North America and Europe have accounted for the bulk of global aircraft demand, while the Asia-Pacific region has shown the fastest fleet growth, with an average of 7.2% per year since 1985. In North America and Europe, fleet growth rates are expected to slow relative to prior decades, while the Asia-Pacific region and Latin America are expected to generate much faster demand growth over the coming decade.
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Historical Fleet Growth by Region
Source: ACAS, December 2006
Note: "CAGR" is Compound Annual Growth Rate
North America. Despite high fuel prices, 2006 proved to be a turnaround year for many North American carriers. Years of progress in reducing costs were finally matched by a strong revenue environment. The availability of Chapter 11 protection for several airlines helped support this environment by enabling uncharacteristic domestic capacity cuts. In April 2007, IATA updated its forecast for North American carriers to reflect the $7.4 billion operating profit for 2006 versus an operating loss of $300.0 million in 2005. Excluding $9.0 billion in restructuring costs, which are primarily related to the Northwest and Delta bankruptcies, North American carriers are reported to have earned a net profit of $3.3 billion in 2006.
In North America, new aircraft order activity has been largely dominated by the LCCs over the last several years. According to ACAS, 41% of the North American order backlog is represented by LCCs such as AirTran, Southwest and Westjet. Despite the large order books, however, LCCs look set to exercise capacity restraint in 2007, as evidenced by AirTran and JetBlue delivery deferrals.
Major U.S. airlines such as American, United, Delta, US Airways and Northwest will likely be part of the next round of new aircraft orders, though the bulk of consequent deliveries will likely be many years in the future. While new aircraft deliveries and fleet growth may lag behind the rest of the world in the next five years, the sheer size of replacement requirements will drive the largest market for narrowbody aircraft globally. In addition to replacement needs for the North American passenger fleet, the freighter fleet requires modernization.
Asia-Pacific. Despite epidemics and natural disasters, Asian traffic, which was less affected by the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 than the United States and Europe, has experienced continued growth in recent years. The Chinese market presents the primary growth engine in the region; passenger traffic growth has been very strong, with the number of passengers handled by China's airports reaching nearly 140 million in 2005, an increase of more than 15% from the prior year. Although medium-term growth in the Chinese market may be temporarily constrained by infrastructure
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and capacity limits, the Civil Aviation Administration of China plans to invest over $17.4 billion in airport development and build more than 40 airports to address these infrastructure needs over the next five years, according to Airline Business (April 2006). According to ACAS, Chinese carriers took delivery of 247 new aircraft from 2005 through 2006 and the current order backlog for Chinese airlines totals 735 aircraft, nearly all of which are expected to be delivered within the next five years. The domestic market has enormous potential and according to the Airbus Global Market Forecast 2006, the Chinese outbound tourism market is expected to be the fastest growing in the world.
India, a country with over one billion people, representing 15% of the global population, experienced limited air service growth during recent decades. This changed dramatically however, in 2003 following moves by the government to liberalize the air transport sector. The present strong traffic growth is expected to continue, with India's GDP growth expected to amount to 7.3% for 2006 and forecasted to be 7% in 2007, according to the IMF 2006 World Economic Outlook. In its 2006 Traffic Forecast, Airbus estimated that domestic traffic growth in India would average 7.7% annually over the next 20 years. Indian carriers took delivery of 50 aircraft in 2006 and account for a current backlog of 382 jet aircraft. Despite the demand, Indian carriers are in danger of growing capacity too quickly and many carriers are operating at substantial losses at present. In order to accommodate this dramatic fleet increase, India is expected to continue to invest in airport and passenger handling infrastructure to enable carriers to diversify route networks and focus on earning yields above break-even levels.
In addition to the projected potential for substantial growth in India and China's traffic, economic recovery in Japan and continued growth in Korea and Southeast Asia is expected to contribute to continued demand. Also, the Southeast Asian carriers continue to grow and develop new service opportunities and startup carriers as evidenced by the success of LCCs such as AirAsia and Tiger Airways.
Europe. Air travel growth prospects for Eastern Europe are very positive, with seven countries ranking in IATA's list of the top 20 countries demonstrating the highest compounded annual growth rates in passenger traffic for 2005-2009. This passenger growth is being driven by European Union enlargement, which has bolstered the region's economic growth, promoted liberalization in the aviation market, and encouraged the establishment of several LCCs. Approximately 50.0% of the European order backlog is represented by LCCs such as Ryanair, easyJet, SkyEurope, Air Berlin and Air One. These carriers will likely continue to open new markets and stimulate new traffic while simultaneously shifting market share from the European flag carriers. Despite the LCC dominance over the European narrowbody order book, major European carriers such as Lufthansa and Air France continue to place orders for new long-haul aircraft while a major long-haul fleet replacement order is expected from British Airways later this year.
In Russia, air travel demand is hampered by Russian airlines' difficulties in accessing the market for efficient, Western-built aircraft. The bulk of Russia's passenger aircraft fleet is currently made up of old and inefficient Soviet-era aircraft and import duties and excise taxes on Western aircraft continue to make it difficult for many Russian airlines to replace equipment. Despite these challenges, Russia's civil aviation authority estimates that a large number of the Soviet-era aircraft in service will face retirement by 2010, driving the need for an estimated 500 aircraft to fill the capacity gap. Demand for new aircraft and limited supply of capital may result in Russia becoming a significant growth market for operating lessors in coming years.
Middle East/Africa. Air traffic in Africa and the Middle East has also grown rapidly in the last ten years. Governments in Persian Gulf states such as the United Arab Emirates and Qatar have supported the development of airlines, including Emirates Airlines, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways, resulting in the rapid expansion of these airlines into long-haul markets. The Persian Gulf region also has two established LCCs, Air Arabia and Jazeera Airways, and two Saudi Arabia-based LCCs are set to launch in 2007.
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Africa is also experiencing growing demand for air travel, and major European carriers have started to add capacity to the continent. The interest in lucrative African routes, often governed by restrictive bilateral air service agreements that limit the number of carriers that can operate each route, is evidenced by the Lufthansa-Swiss International merger, which the German carrier hailed as an opportunity to gain valuable new route access to Africa. Further attesting to the region's positive outlook, several carriers made news in recent years. They included Ethiopian Airlines with an order for ten Boeing 787s; South African Airways with its entry into the Star Alliance in April 2006; Kenya Airways with its invitation to become an associate member of the SkyTeam alliance; and the recently launched Virgin Nigeria Airways.
Latin America. Since 2001, most Latin American economies have experienced an economic upturn, according to the International Monetary Fund's 2006 World Economic Outlook. Several airlines in the region ceased operations in recent years, but the increased liberalization of domestic and international air transport markets has spurred renewed investment, reorganization and consolidation in the airline sector. Growth potential in large domestic markets such as Mexico and Brazil is substantial, and several well-run carriers are taking advantage of this demand. Industry consolidation is expected to generate savings through economies of scale and expand the airlines' route networks, which should improve service levels and stimulate further traffic growth. As discussed earlier, LCC capacity share in Latin America has risen, driven by growth in Brazil and Mexico. During the past year, Mexico saw five new ventures and Brazil's Gol, which had successfully established itself in domestic service, continued to expand its reach outside of Brazil with the acquisition of Varig in 2007.
Drivers of Aircraft Replacement
Airline fleet planners must not only evaluate aircraft choices to cover an airline's growth requirement, but must also assess the economic and strategic feasibility of fleet renewal. Replacement demand derives from the need to remove aircraft with unattractive operating economics and poor reliability from carrier fleets. Replacement can be achieved through the new aircraft market by ordering aircraft from manufacturers, or can take place via the used market through buying or leasing 5-10 year old newer generation equipment. Several developments in the industry indicate a growing need for replacement over the course of the next decade.
Industry Restructuring and Consolidation
In North America, the legal protection provided by Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code and similar provisions in Canada has allowed carriers to restructure their operations, including reorganizing schedules, restructuring debt, rationalizing fleets, reducing labor costs and lowering pension liabilities. The ability of carriers in bankruptcy to shed inefficient capacity has greatly contributed to the overall yield improvement evident in the U.S. market during 2006. If the major U.S. airlines continue to recover, these carriers must eventually replace their existing fleets with more modern, fuel-efficient aircraft.
Large European network carriers, particularly Lufthansa, Air France/KLM and British Airways, have achieved significant cost savings and material revenue growth improvements by concentrating on more lucrative long-haul operations rather than marginally profitable short-haul flights. All three carriers have recently expanded operations to India and East Asia, especially China, and all have recently placed new orders for long-haul aircraft. Despite some recent failed attempts, many industry observers are predicting significant global consolidation in coming years.
Regardless, while the rate of fleet growth of the North American and European carriers will be lower than regions such as Asia and Latin America, the coming need for fleet replacement and the substantial absolute size of these fleets will continue to translate into a substantial share of long-term deliveries for carriers in these regions.
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Relative Operating Economics
Increased energy prices have largely hidden the effects of the efficiency gains and cost-cutting efforts undertaken by airlines since 2001. The U.S. Department of Energy reports New York jet fuel prices increased by 123% between December 2003 and April 2007 in U.S. dollar terms and 106% in Euro terms. The sustained high price of fuel may have significant ramifications for the health of the air transport industry. IATA reports that the industry fuel bill increased from $44 billion (14% of cost) in 2003 to $111 billion (26% of cost) in 2006. IATA expects total fuel costs to have increased to $117 billion (26% of costs) in 2007 and forecasts it to drop to be $112 billion (24% of costs) in 2008. Despite some relief in crude oil prices in 2007, IATA expects crude oil prices to average $61 per barrel in 2007 and notes that with profitable fuel hedges coming to an end for many carriers, the jet fuel bill is expected to remain a large proportion of operating costs for the foreseeable future.
Expectations that fuel prices will remain high in coming years is beginning to spur plans for accelerated fleet replacement, particularly for the oldest aircraft in the global fleet. Despite the desire to replace certain aircraft, however, many carriers simply cannot access newer equipment given the lack of supply in the market.
Technological Advancement
Aircraft replacement is also clearly driven by technological advancement. Aircraft manufacturers must balance the development and introduction of new technology with existing resource constraints and current product-line considerations. The development cycles for new aircraft are long and often require dramatic changes mid-course as evidenced by Boeing's cancellation of the Sonic Cruiser program and Airbus' multiple iterations of the A350 design (Airbus launched the A350XWB in late 2006 designed to eventually replace both the A330/A340 and compete with the 777 and 787 with deliveries expected to commence in 2013). In addition, once aircraft are successfully launched and developed, it takes several years for the type to achieve the critical mass necessitating large scale fleet replacement. Large scale deliveries of the newest technology widebody aircraft are still several years away, but these aircraft will have a certain impact on the market for the aircraft types they are designed to replace.
Aircraft Supply
The supply of aircraft is determined by the number of new aircraft the manufacturers are able to deliver, as well as the fleet retirement and freighter conversion decisions of airlines, which are based on assessments of the interaction between relative aircraft economics and the levels of passenger traffic and yield.
New Delivery Outlook
The airline industry's financial challenges in 2001-2003 impacted aircraft and engine manufacturers. Airbus, Boeing, Pratt & Whitney, General Electric and Rolls-Royce implemented production cutbacks during that period. While neither Boeing nor Airbus experienced a high number of outright cancellations during the downturn, they deferred deliveries and adapted to much lower levels of new orders. By 2005, however, the economic recovery and rising demand for travel pushed aircraft orders to record highs. 2006 proved to be another bumper year for new aircraft orders and, despite expanded production capability since 2003, the manufacturers are reported to be largely sold out through 2010.
The current order backlog provides the best indication of the allocation of deliveries expected in the coming years. More than 5,600 aircraft are currently on order and most are due to be delivered over the next five years. Of 4,829 orders with specified customers, 40% have been ordered by Asia-Pacific carriers, another 25% of orders are destined for North America, and 23% for Europe. Furthermore, 1,478 aircraft (26% of the backlog) are on order by LCCs.
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LCCs in Europe and North America account for a disproportionate share of the aircraft order books relative to their share of traffic in these regions. It is clear that these carriers will continue to grow faster than their traditional network counterparts, particularly in these regions which are characterized by more mature and fragmented intra-regional travel markets.
LCC Share of March 2007 Order Backlog, by Region
Source: ACAS March 2007; SH&E Analysis
Boeing is expected to maintain production discipline despite temptation to invest in new production capacity to satisfy near term demand. It has announced expectations that it will deliver approximately 440 aircraft in 2007 and up to 515 in 2008 as the 787 production begins. The 787 delivery stream will likely mitigate a potential cyclical demand downturn that may occur in coming years, since the initial several years of deliveries reflect significant pent-up demand for the mid-sized long-haul market segment.
Having outperformed Boeing for years, Airbus faced a difficult year in 2006 and prospects for coming years will continue to bring significant challenges. Delays to the A380 delivery stream, several attempts to launch a commercially successful competitor to the 787 and 777 and political and management upheaval continue to place the manufacturer in a difficult cash position. The recent introduction of the Power8 restructuring program will help Airbus address these problems by reducing overhead, increasing the speed of aircraft development, relying more heavily on the supply chain and increasing the efficiency of its manufacturing process. It is expected that Airbus will leverage its popular A320 family and A330 production lines while restructuring takes place. In line with this expectation, Airbus recently announced intentions to bring A320 family production from 32 per month to 36 per month by the end of 2008. From 2009, Airbus plans to produce up to four additional A320 family aircraft per month in China.
Based on potential build rates and planning from Boeing and Airbus, the chart below illustrates SH&E's view as to the expected level of new aircraft deliveries from the two manufacturers over the next five years. It is possible, however, that constraints in the supply chain (such as access to titanium and carbon fiber material) may prevent Boeing and Airbus from fully meeting production goals.
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World Aircraft Orders and Deliveries (1990-2006) and Delivery Forecast
Source: ACAS, December 2006, Forecast: SH&E
Aircraft Retirement Outlook
Airlines order new aircraft not only to grow their businesses, but also to replace older less-efficient aircraft in their fleets, and current high fuel prices are accelerating such replacements. If carriers are able to execute on their fleet replacement plans and there is no demand for additional use of an aircraft by another operator, the aircraft will be permanently retired. The chart below shows that North America, Africa and Latin America will have a greater need for fleet replacement in the near term given their aging fleets.
Commercial JetsAverage Fleet Age, 2006
Source: ACAS, December 2006
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According to ACAS, more than 2,200 aircraft were parked in temporary or permanent storage as of December 2006. Based on SH&E's observations, approximately 1,600 of these aircraft are obsolete and are highly unlikely to ever re-enter operational service. The number of aircraft being officially retired from service or being scrapped for parts spiked during 2001 and 2002 and tapered off slightly in recent years as aircraft demand rebounded. Based on historically derived curves, SH&E expects the need for aircraft retirement to increase over the next few years as the fleet ages and marginal aircraft are removed from service. It should be noted that there are over 1,250 Stage 2 (Stage 2 refers to aircraft that do not comply with FAR Part 36, Stage 3 and ICAO Annex 13, Chapter III noise level limits and are restricted from operating in most jurisdictions) aircraft still in service and SH&E believes that the retirement rate should increase to over 350 retirements for each of the next three years.
Used Aircraft Market
In line with the cyclical demand recovery, the number of available used aircraft as a share of the total fleet has declined steadily since 2002. The percentage of the world fleet that was available for sale or lease at the end of 2005 fell below 3%, nearing the lows experienced in 1996. In addition, the vast majority of the "old" aircraft types reflected below are aircraft models that simply do not have sufficient reliability or operating economics to warrant service re-entry.
Source: Airline Monitor, February 2007
Notes: (1) New aircraft include: 737-300 to 900, 757, MD-80/90, A-319/320/321, BAe
146, F-70/100, CL-600, EMB, 747-300/400, 767,777, MD-11, A-300-600, A-310 & 330/340; (2) Old aircraft
include: 707, DC-8, DC-9, 727,737-100/200, F-28, BAC-1-11, Caravelle, L-1011, DC-10,
747-100/200, A-300B4-100/200.
The few new generation aircraft that are available on the used market are typically being marketed in advance and not actually available until 9 to 12 months in the future. These types have large user bases that are continuing to expand as the operators produce additional units and supply is severely limited. These supply shortages of the newer aircraft types have led to substantial increases in lease rates and values for a number of new generation aircraft types, particularly the A320 family and 737NG family, which are highly favored by LCCs and start-up carriers, but also form the backbone of major network carrier short-haul networks. Supply of efficient widebody aircraft is also severely constrained, particularly since deliveries of new 767-300ERs fell substantially once the 787 order book gained momentum. As described earlier, increasing liberalization is fragmenting long-haul markets and this has led to a high degree of pent-up demand for mid-size long-haul aircraft such as the 767-300ER and
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A330. Supply is effectively zero and during 2006 it was clear that manufacturers were not able to satisfy demand. This demand filters directly down into the Generation 2 used aircraft market which also exhibits supply shortages. Aircraft such as 767-300ERs, 757-200s and 737 Classics are experiencing strong demand and will largely remain in service despite the fact that early build examples of these types are nearing retirement age.
As discussed previously, the expected production rates at both major manufacturers will only partially alleviate the supply shortfall and, as a consequence, 737 Classics, 757s, early vintage A320 and 767-300ER aircraft are likely to remain in demand for a number of years to come, even with modest traffic growth. The relative efficiency of these types is clearly sufficient to pass the operating cost differential test described above and airlines continue to operate such aircraft profitably. In essence, the lower ownership costs of this category of equipment offsets the fuel savings of the latest generation of aircraft. This indicates that excess demand and high lease rates for new equipment is helping to extend passenger service operating lives of such aircraft. Once the market nears equilibrium and sufficient aircraft supply exists to satisfy passenger demand, many of the aforementioned aircraft type fleets will likely be partially transitioned to freighter service.
Long Term Commercial Jet Fleet Outlook
The size of the global commercial jet fleet is expected to double over the next two decades, a rate of growth consistent with that observed in the prior two decades. Boeing's 2006 Current Market Outlook forecast indicates that the world fleet will reach 35,970 aircraft in 2025, of which 27,370 will be mainline passenger jets. Boeing defines mainline passenger jets as those of more than 90 seats. Airbus, in its 2006 Global Market Forecast, forecasts growth to 33,500 total aircraft by 2025, of which 27,307 will be mainline passenger jets. Airbus defines mainline passenger aircraft as those of more than 100 seats. While the two manufacturers have similar forecasts of global traffic growth, their views of the market for "very large aircraft" such as the Airbus A380 are substantially different. Airbus expects congestion at major airports and low per-seat operating costs to draw airlines to the largest possible aircraft. Boeing expects passengers, and therefore airlines, to favor point-to-point service in smaller, fuel-efficient aircraft, including the 787 and A350XWB.
Projected Commercial Aircraft Fleet Growth
|
Airline Monitor 2006-2025 |
Airbus 2006-2025 |
Boeing 2006-2025 |
||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Projected Total Fleet | 40,097 | 33,479 | 35,970 | ||||
Additions-Growth | 21,898 | 17,102 | 17,630 | ||||
Additions-Replacement | 6,402 | 5,561 | 9,580 | ||||
Total Additions | 28,300 | 22,663 | 27,210 | ||||
Additions per Year | 1,415 | 1,133 | 1,361 | ||||
20 Year Fleet CAGR | 4.0 | % | 3.4 | % | 3.7 | % |
Source: Airbus Global Market Forecast, 2006; Boeing Market Outlook, 2006; the Airline Monitor, January, February 2007
Although North American and European traffic growth rates are expected to slow relative to the past, the sheer size of the current fleets will result in large requirements for additional aircraft. Large intra-regional travel demand will mean the core fleet growth in these regions will be in narrowbody aircraft types. Asia-Pacific will require substantial numbers of additional widebody aircraft to meet growing long-haul travel demand and this market is expected to generate the largest share of deliveries by value over the next 20 years.
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World Engine Market Outlook
The expected air travel and air freight demand growth in emerging markets, particularly China and India, the continued development of LCCs, and ongoing fleet renewal at legacy carriers are driving increased demand for commercial aircraft, and consequently for aircraft engines. Rolls-Royce, a leading engine manufacturer, forecasts commercial jet engine deliveries totaling 61,209 worth $508 billion, including spares, through 2025. Based on Rolls-Royce's forecast delivery rate, the number of jet engines in service will more than double from approximately 44,705 in 2006 to 90,614 in 2025.
Aircraft Leasing Industry
Overview of Aircraft Leasing
Aircraft leasing has evolved over the last 40 years to become a highly sophisticated market. In effect, leasing has become a source of capital that carriers use along with debt and equity to finance their equipment acquisitions. Regardless of whether the purchased aircraft are new or used, very few airlines have the internal cash available to self-finance aircraft acquisitions. Thus, most airlines seek financing from several sources, including traditional bank debt, export credit guarantees, tax leases, capital market transactions and operating leasing.
Over the past 20 years, the world's airlines have turned to operating leases for an increasing share of aircraft financing requirements. Airlines are attracted to operating leasing for a variety of reasons, including low capital outlay requirements, fleet planning flexibility and residual value risk avoidance. Furthermore, operating leasing is often the preferred choice for start-up carriers because it lowers the capital requirements for entering the market. Many banks significantly reduced their airline exposure between 2002 and 2004, and it became more difficult for airlines to obtain financing through the capital markets. Operating lessors effectively acted as the lenders of last resort to the industry during that period, maintaining vital liquidity in an otherwise challenging market environment.
As shown below, Ascend data indicates that the proportion of the global fleet under operating lease has increased from 17% in 1990 to 30% in 2006. SH&E believes that operating leases will continue to become more popular and that 40% of the global fleet will be subject to operating leases over the course of the next 10 years. Of the current backlog of 5,683 aircraft, 733 were ordered by 11 leasing companies directly and a significant number more are likely to be under lease ultimately as a result of sale/leaseback transactions.
Evolution of Fleet under Operating Lease, 1990-2006
Source: Ascend as of September 2006
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Operating Lease IndustryCompetitive Landscape
By recent estimates, the aircraft leasing industry represents assets worth over $120 billion. Among the 20 major players, the top two together account for over half the global portfolio. General Electric Capital Aviation Services ("GECAS") owns and manages approximately 1,715 aircraft and ILFC owns and manages 929 aircraft. Other key operating lessors, ranging from AerCap to Macquarie are significantly smaller but form the core of a competitive leasing industry, as described below.
Top Mainline Jet Operating Lessors
Operating Lessor |
Narrowbody |
Widebody |
Total |
|||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
GECAS | 1529 | 186 | 1715 | |||
ILFC | 659 | 270 | 929 | |||
Boeing Capital | 240 | 27 | 267 | |||
AerCap | 224 | 20 | 244 | |||
Aviation Capital Group | 207 | 6 | 213 | |||
CIT Aerospace | 185 | 23 | 208 | |||
Babcock & Brown | 184 | 20 | 204 | |||
RBS Aviation Capital | 193 | 3 | 196 | |||
Pegasus Aviation | 145 | 37 | 182 | |||
AWAS | 105 | 37 | 142 | |||
Macquarie | 131 | 6 | 137 | |||
ORIX Aviation | 84 | 10 | 94 | |||
BCI | 76 | 11 | 87 | |||
Singapore Aircraft Leasing | 56 | 14 | 70 | |||
Pembroke | 62 | 4 | 66 | |||
Aircastle Advisor | 51 | 15 | 66 | |||
Sumisho | 38 | 6 | 44 | |||
Allco | 25 | 18 | 43 | |||
Tombo Aviation | 26 | 6 | 32 | |||
Guggenheim Aviation Partners | 21 | 10 | 31 | |||
Total | 4,241 | 729 | 4,970 | |||
Source: Ascend AIR, March 2007
Following the recovery in the aircraft leasing market that started in 2004, there has been significant activity and interest in lessor acquisitions by strategic and financial buyers. In June 2005, Cerberus purchased AerCap, which has since acquired part-out specialist AeroTurbine and continues to grow its portfolio through new orders and lease acquisitions. Earlier in 2005, Aviation Capital Group increased its size and global reach with the acquisition of Boullioun Aviation Services. In May 2006, Terra Firma acquired AWAS. Another major player, RBS Aviation Capital, has grown organically through sale-leaseback transactions and recently committed to new aircraft orders from Airbus and Boeing. In December 2006, Bank of China acquired full ownership of Singapore Aircraft Leasing Enterprise ("SALE") for $965.0 million from Singapore Airlines, WestLB and two Singapore government investment arms. In late 2006, GATX sold its remaining aircraft leasing interests to Macquarie Aircraft Leasing. Aircastle dramatically increased the size of its fleet during 2006 and 2007, in part through the purchase of 38 passenger and freighter aircraft from Guggenheim Aviation which was announced in January 2007.
As of March 2007, ILFC and GECAS together accounted for 359 aircraft on order, but other key lessors such as AerCap, CIT Aerospace, RBS Aviation Capital and SALE placed significant orders in 2005 and 2006.
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Top Aircraft Operating Lessor Order Backlogs
Operating Lessor |
Narrowbody |
Widebody |
Total |
|||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
ILFC | 132 | 76 | 208 | |||
GECAS | 132 | 19 | 151 | |||
AerCap | 76 | 20 | 96 | |||
CIT Aerospace | 52 | 25 | 77 | |||
Singapore Aircraft Leasing | 66 | | 66 | |||
RBS Aviation Capital | 41 | | 41 | |||
Alafco | 6 | 24 | 30 | |||
Pegasus Aviation | 4 | 14 | 18 | |||
Guggenheim Aviation Partners | | 17 | 17 | |||
Aviation Capital Group | 15 | | 15 | |||
LCAL | | 14 | 14 | |||
Total | 524 | 209 | 733 | |||
Source: Ascend AIR, March 2007
Regional Penetration of Operating Leasing
Today, the leading operating lessors have a truly global reach. Although 60.0% of the fleet under operating leases is placed with North American and European operators, South America has the highest percentage of aircraft under lease, followed by Asia, Europe and the Pacific Rim.
Europe has experienced the biggest increase in operating lease penetration, due in large part to the boom of the LCC carriers entering service. Compared to 1990, Europe's penetration has gone up by 25 percentage points through 2006 and is expected to continue to increase as markets in Eastern Europe, Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States grow and increase opportunities for LCCs and other start-up carriers.
While North America has not witnessed a rapid increase in the proportion of operating leases over the last two decades, this trend is expected to change. Major carriers are no longer able to rely on the leverage leasing market and capital market financing has become comparatively difficult to secure. It is expected that both U.S. major carriers and LCCs will likely increase reliance on operating leasing as a key source of financing in coming years. Given that the United States will represent the largest narrowbody market globally, the major operating lessors are well placed to help finance these requirements.
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Historical Operating Lease Penetration by Region
Source: Ascend
Operating leasing in the Asia-Pacific region will also continue its upward trajectory as the market fragments and new carriers continue to evolve. The major Asian airlines have access to very cheap bank financing and will be unlikely to be major users of operating leasing, but the growing set of LCC and short-haul airlines in this region operating primarily narrowbody aircraft will continue to generate opportunities for leasing companies. Lessors are already very active in both China and India, where domestic fleet requirements, both leased and owned, will continue to grow.
In recent years, operating lease penetration has increased in the Middle East due to rapid fleet growth and bridge lift requirements by several carriers. Aside from the LCC sector, however, major carriers in the region have relatively easy access to capital and are not expected to be heavy users of the operating lease market in the future. Latin America has long had the highest proportion of operating leasing and this is primarily a result of carriers in the region having no other access to capital.
Asset Selection & Asset Management
The ability for aircraft leasing companies to earn stable returns is dependent on asset liquidity and asset management capability. A lessor generally earns profits when the present value of the lease revenues and future aircraft sale value exceeds the original purchase price of the aircraft and the expenses involved between leases. The entry price is dependent on prevailing market conditions and the relative bargaining power between buyer and seller. Maximizing residual value and rental revenue, however, requires appropriate asset selection in line with the lessor's strategic objectives, an understanding of the current market for specific aircraft types, anticipation of trends that may impact aircraft value over a given investment horizon and the ability to execute asset monetization and disposition strategies. Such strategies vary, according to the age and the relative desirability of the asset but include re-leasing, selling (with or without a lease attached) or dismantling to obtain the constituent components.
Leasing is a cash flow business and key objectives include management of lease revenue stream, smoothly transitioning aircraft between lessees in order to minimize off-lease time, minimizing refurbishment or reconfiguration costs by keeping assets relatively standardized and minimizing risk by
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predicting impact of maintenance exposures and expected lease return conditions. Lessors can mitigate exposures to aircraft market risk and asset specific risk by working to select appropriate assets for purchase. In addition to expectations relating to the future value and lease rate behavior of a specific aircraft type, when selecting assets to purchase, lessors often focus on those aircraft with the highest market liquidity, such as the A320, 737-800, 767-300ER and A330-200. For each aircraft/engine model, the prospective buyer must understand the breadth (number of operators) and depth (number of aircraft) in the market, the share of the fleet in storage, current aircraft availability and trading activity of used aircraft. In addition, important considerations for the residual value of aircraft relate to levels of product support, whether the aircraft remains in production or has replacement technology on the horizon, potential for freighter conversion or other secondary uses, and relative operating economics.
Operating Lease Depth and Breadth by Model
Source: ACAS, December 2006
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Aircraft Lease Rates and Lease Rate Trends
Aircraft operating lease rates generally represent market-clearing prices that reflect current supply and demand. Lease rates depend upon the type of lease, interest rates, tax liabilities, lease term, value of the aircraft at lease inception, the forecasted residual value of the aircraft at lease termination and the credit quality of the lessee. During the air transport demand downturn of 2002 and 2003, lessors showed considerable pricing flexibility and often entered into short-term leases at reduced rates in order to keep assets deployed. Now that global passenger traffic has recovered, lease rates have firmed substantially, and lessors are able to realize lease rates above pre-2001 levels on certain aircraft types.
Although lease rates are closely correlated to global economic conditions, rates for a particular aircraft generally hold steady in nominal terms for a long period, then fall quickly once the aircraft type faces large scale replacement. Once replacement technology for the aircraft in question is established in the market, the aircraft's lease rates typically decline quickly and permanently.
As a summary measure, aircraft lessors and traders typically measure the effect of interest rates and residual value risk by looking at the ratio of lease rates to purchase prices, known as a "lease rate factor." Lease rate factors tend to rise as aircraft age, and they also vary with lease term length. Lease rate factors for newer aircraft are lower than those for older aircraft, due to the increased risk associated with older aircraft. Older aircraft tend to be operated by less credit-worthy airlines and residual value performance is a much more important component of overall return. Moreover, lease rental volatility tends to be greater for older aircraft and they exhibit a wider percentage change in lease rates from cycle peak to cycle trough.
For many aircraft types, excess demand has led to an increase in lease rental rates and, in certain cases, aircraft values. Historically, growing demand for a particular aircraft and resulting higher lease rates has correlated strongly with increased market value. Trading values normally lag lease rate movement, and it is expected that some aircraft will see a limited increase in trading values over the short to medium term.
Whereas rentals for many used aircraft models fully recovered following the recent air transport demand downturn, lease rates of certain older aircraft appear to have suffered a permanent reduction that suggests accelerated obsolescence. The attraction of the superior operating economics of the latest generation of narrowbody transports is compelling, especially in light of current high fuel costs. For a number of Generation 3 aircraft types, particularly the A320 and 737, which are highly favored by LCCs, supply is very limited. Lease rates for newer narrowbody aircraft are consequently expected to continue to rise over the next few years. Generation 2 narrowbodies, such as 737 classics and 757-200 have increased in the last year and are likely to remain firm, but are expected to experience greater volatility over the next cycle.
Demand for mid-size widebody aircraft types, such as the 767-300ER and A330-200, is exceptionally strong and cannot be met by current aircraft availability. These aircraft may generate very high returns in coming years, but face greater risk of low lease rates and residual value performance during the next market trough. SH&E believes that, barring some unforeseen geopolitical event, lease rates for most of the in-service aircraft will continue to increase over the next few years or, at the very least, remain stable.
Engine Leasing Industry
For the same reasons that aircraft leasing is becoming increasingly prevalent, the spare engine leasing market is also growing rapidly. Operators require spare engines to ensure that their aircraft are not grounded due to planned or unplanned engine maintenance requirements. In addition, as engines become more expensive, operators are increasingly entering into operating leases rather than owning their spare engines.
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Spare Engine Demand
While total installed engine demand is a function of the number of aircraft in the fleet, spare engine demand is dependent upon an array of factors. Many of these factors are unique to specific engine type, fleet age, operator base and engine shop visit rates. The largest driver of spare engine demand is the number of annual engine hours operated, which in turn is a function of the fleet size and utilization patterns for a specific aircraft/engine type. The general consensus in the engine leasing industry, however, is that the spare engine population is 10 to 15% of the installed engine fleet; or between 4,200 and 6,200 engines.
As engines reach maturity, their off-wing maintenance requirements increase and a higher ratio of spare engines is required to support the installed fleet. As a result, spare engine demand for a given fleet of engines will continue to increase once the platform fleet type has ceased production. Spare engine leasing therefore tends to be most active from the time production ends until the relevant platform aircraft type is retired in large numbers.
An additional driver of the engine demand occurs when large fleets of a given aircraft type are moved from major airlines to a larger number of smaller airlines throughout the world. This creates a demand for more spare engines to support the smaller and more geographically dispersed fleets though smaller carriers are beginning to find ways to mitigate such inefficiencies through spare engine pooling and other logistics support programs.
Engine Operating Leases
Today's aircraft operators have a large number of products to choose from to provision their spare engines, ranging from outright ownership, short and long-term operating leases, support through total care contracts and a variety of other solutions. As with aircraft, engine operating leases are appropriate for those operators that have difficulty raising funds for equipment purchases, have better uses for their capital or do not want to have additional debt on their balance sheets. Engine operating leases can be as short as two months or as long as 15 to 20 years, depending on operator requirements. Short-term leases are typically three to six months in duration and are used as stopgap measures to cover individual engines while they undergo shop visits, while long-term operating leases are used by airlines with fleets of a sufficient size to warrant full-time spare "engine coverage". The operating lease arrangement allows maximum spare engine utilization and permits the lessee to use off balance sheet financing. Engine leasing companies can typically extract higher lease rates for short-term leases, since there is typically a more immediate operator need. Furthermore, such leases almost always require maintenance reserve payments, so in many cases the lessor can achieve better protection for assets in short-term lease pools.
Competitive Environment
Engine lessors can loosely be categorized as those affiliated with the Original Equipment Manufacturers ("OEMs"), independent engine lessors, MRO providers and financiers/investors. A significant number of smaller lessors also participate in the market, but primarily for older engines that require less capital and are likely to be disassembled and sold for their component parts at the end of the lease term.
While the three primary engine manufactures have long had engine leasing divisions to support their products, their assets were typically leased for short terms, and the primary role of such leasing divisions was not to finance engines for customers. Over the last 15 years, however, OEM leasing divisions have grown significantly and are increasingly becoming independent profit centers that provide short and long-term spare engine provisioning options to customers.
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While engine leasing requires significant technical knowledge and asset management ability, in several ways it entails lower business risks than aircraft leasing. For example, the demand for spare engines is less sensitive to airline profitability and engine lessors typically face lower remarketing risk. As with aircraft, engine lessors are expected to seek to participate in the most liquid markets; engine types with high usage rates and wide operator bases. Other factors important to asset selection are the long-term utility of host aircraft and availability of third-party MRO facilities. The liquidity and continuous maintenance needs of the fleet of CFM56-3 and -5 engines that power 737 Classics and A320s respectively, make these some of the most attractive leasing assets.
Engine Values and Lease Rate Trends
With appropriate maintenance and care, an aircraft engine has considerably longer life than that of an aircraft airframe. Engines can be restored to nearly new condition through maintenance while airframes cannot.
Aircraft engines may be categorized by the maximum amount of thrust they produce, and all else being equal, the value of engines are strongly related to this maximum. This manifests itself in a strong and direct relationship between new engine list prices and takeoff thrust. Used engine values however, are dependent upon a large number of factors which must be considered for each engine. Maintenance costs, fuel burn, ease of remarketing, and expected useful life, among other factors, are considered in determining the value of an engine model. The value of a specific engine is dependent on even more factors, including the condition of the parts in the engine, the time the engine can be expected to operate before needing scheduled maintenance, and open mandatory compliance maintenance tasks.
The general value trends for engines can be characterized by breaking up the asset life cycle into three phases. The first phase of production is characterized by continued strong new engine demand with used engine values increasing slightly faster than the rate of inflation in accordance with engine manufacturer escalation rates for new engines. When strong demand for the platform aircraft falls off, the asset enters the second phase and the installed engine fleet enters a relatively long period characterized by stable supply and demand, and the slight depreciation of the engine value is offset by inflation. As demand for the aircraft that the engine supports falls due to obsolescence, engines begin to lose value quickly and in many cases are more economical to disassemble into parts than undergo maintenance. An engine's value is comprised of two liquid components, the shop visit and Life Limited Parts ("LLPs"), and the remainder of the engine, or core.
The engine disks that rotate at high speeds are subject to high mechanical stresses and to ensure their safety, manufacturers limit the number of cycles these critical parts can be utilized. Upon reaching the limit, these LLPs must be removed from the engine. The large physical size of the parts, elaborate manufacturing processes, and exotic metals result in the parts being very expensive. With LLP set prices ranging from $1.5m to more than $7m for modern aircraft engines, the status of the LLPs in the engine contributes significantly to engine value.
High temperatures in the turbine cause airfoil wear which decreases engine efficiency, requiring them to be replaced at engine shop visits. Although perhaps not individually expensive, modern aircraft engines typically have 1,000 to 2,000 airfoils that are expensive in aggregate to replace, and so the time since the last performance restoration exerts a strong influence on engine value.
The core engine value accounts for the remainder of the engine value, including the non life-limited parts and engine data plate, and is most strongly linked to engine demand for the engine type. As the engine moves from Phase I to III, the value provided by the liquid components increases as a percent of the total engine value. Engine leasing companies can typically extract higher lease rates for short-term leases since there is typically a more immediate operator need, a requirement to amortize transaction costs over a shorter term and a greater risk of technical issues arising at lease
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return. Lease rate factors are generally higher for older engines given the relatively higher re-marketing risk and asset management requirements.
Spare Parts Trading Market
Demand for used aircraft parts is tied directly to utilization of the aircraft that the spare parts support. Higher aircraft utilization leads to greater wear on components, which results in more frequent part replacements, repairs and overhauls. The parts aftermarket is comprised of a few large companies, including GE Aviation Material Services, AAR Corp, Volvo Aero and AirLiance, several well established mid-size companies such as AeroTurbine, Kellstrom and the Memphis Group as well as many small niche participants. All of these companies tend to buy surplus equipment from OEM's or airlines and resell it to airlines, MRO facilities or to other parts companies. Numerous companies purchase complete aircraft and engines to dismantle them for parts (a process known as "part out").
Most parts companies hold their inventories in the condition or state in which the parts were acquired; new if purchased as surplus from an OEM or in an "as-removed" condition if removed from an aircraft. The as-removed condition is by far the most prevalent for parts found in most 3rd-party inventories and these parts must be fully checked by a licensed and qualified repair facility before they can be installed on another aircraft. Parts companies will typically send a limited number of removed parts out to a vendor for testing or overhaul and subsequently hold them in stock in "serviceable" (serviceable parts are in condition satisfactory for installation or use in an aircraft, engine or another spare part or appliance) or "overhauled" (overhauled parts have been repaired and tested to defined overhaul standards specified by the manufacturer) condition ready for immediate sale. Parts traders can generally achieve the highest margins for serviceable material in situations in which an airline has an aircraft grounded due to a lack of internal spare part availability and will a pay high price order to get the aircraft back into revenue service. Parts companies must balance such margin potential with the cost of repairing and holding inventory.
During the recent cyclical downturn, many parts companies experienced distress following airline reductions of capacity through retirement, temporary storage, and reduced aircraft utilization. Parts suppliers found themselves holding large parts inventories for which there was suddenly limited demand and increasing supply. The resurgence in capacity and aircraft utilization in the last several years has increased demand for spare parts for those aircraft types that have experienced increased utilization. Demand for parts of certain older aircraft types that have not been returned to active service continues to wane. In addition, the continuing rebalancing of the world fleet from older aircraft toward less maintenance-intensive newer-generation aircraft has placed strain on some spare parts aftermarket suppliers.
Some aftermarket parts companies have additional business lines in addition to trading aircraft and engine spare parts and many MRO companies also participate in the secondary parts market.
For all aftermarket parts companies, there are only two principal sources of product other than buying from other parts companies. Material can either be obtained from airlines and manufacturers selling surplus inventory or from dismantled aircraft and engines. These dismantled aircraft or engines, otherwise known as "part-outs," are invariably of two categories: (1) either they are approaching the end of their useful economic lives, and it has become economically viable to part them out and sell piecemeal rather than remarketing as a whole unit or (2) they have been assessed as a total constructive loss following a major accident.
For most commercial aircraft, airframes become potential part-out candidates after they have been in service for about 16 years. Thus, for aircraft and engine types that have been in service for less than that length of time, there is a limited supply of material other than from the OEMs, while most aircraft will continue to operate beyond 25 years before they are permanently retired from service However, once an aircraft or an engine type has been in service for more than about seven years, there is an
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increasing demand for spare parts as airframe and engine maintenance requirements increase dramatically. Thus for a period of approximately ten years, there is burgeoning demand for product, and a limited supply from the aftermarket. Several companies supporting the spare parts aftermarket have positioned themselves to take advantage of such demand by acquiring inventories of parts for modern aircraft fleets currently in production, such as Airbus A320, Boeing 737NG aircraft, Boeing 777 aircraft and their corresponding engine types. Demand for these parts is expected to remain strong due to the limited supply aftermarket supply.
Industry Trends
The outsourcing of heavy airframe checks is fairly well established but the outsourcing of component maintenance and parts inventory management is accelerating. Many LCCs are continuing to lead the trend towards further outsourcing and are signing up for inventory management and component maintenance packages.
Airlines benefit from such spare part leasing agreements because management of the entire supply chain is outsourced. Leasing spares is an attractive alternative because the vendor is responsible for inventory replenishment and component repair. The cost of these services is included in a monthly lease fee or "power-by-the-hour" agreement permitting airlines to focus on their core business of transporting passengers and freight. Such industry trends suggest that airlines continue to seek total solutions to streamline inventory logistics, supply chain management and maintenance services.
Continued outsourcing, parts pooling and other supply chain improvements are continuing to decrease the inventory levels held by operators. According to AeroStrategy, a United Kingdom- based consultancy, in 2004 operators held only 60% of MRO inventory compared to nearly 80% in 1997.
Another developing trend in the parts business, and one that will primarily impact OEM parts pricing, is the growing acceptance of Parts Manufacturing Approval (PMA) parts. However, the role of PMAs will grow as these parts gain further acceptance as airlines and MROs strive to keep a lid on rising costs. While switching to vastly cheaper PMA parts would improve airline operating costs, airlines fear stigma and bad press associated with use of PMA parts and, in addition, many investors are concerned that residual value is affected by the use of PMA parts.
In sum, the aftermarket parts trading business is expected to continue to evolve towards further consolidation as companies search for synergies and complements to other business lines. Trends of supply chain integration and logistics support in the maintenance industry and increasing penetration of operating leasing support such trends.
Asset Management & Values
Asset Management
To the extent that the commercial aircraft fleet continues to grow, the aircraft and spare engine leasing markets will continue to increase in size and importance. Effective asset management is essential to an aircraft investor's ability to protect the integrity and value of owned assets. Asset management involves an array of functions and capabilities ranging from financial monitoring to legal capability for effective contracts and evaluation of jurisdictional risks, to detailed technical monitoring and planning.
Technical managers must conduct physical inspections, monitor maintenance funds and aircraft status and Airworthiness Directive compliance, monitor operator use and understand potential technical modifications that may be needed to transition aircraft between lessees. This is essential to knowing the condition and potential value of the owned aircraft to other operators. Aircraft and engine documentation is extremely important and all LLPs must be fully traceable back to original manufacture. A capable asset manger and trader of used aircraft will make sure technical issues are
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minimized and can often avoid having to resort to the temporary storage of an aircraft. The asset owner must also have the wherewithal to effectively manage lessee default situations, negotiate and repossess aircraft if necessary. This task requires significant legal and technical coordination. To reiterate, one major reason aircraft leasing will continue to grow as a source of aircraft finance is that many lessors are expert asset managers and represent the most efficient and flexible means of building asset liquidity.
Aircraft Value Trends
The typical new aircraft will depreciate over time as it ages and experiences the wear and tear of operation. Eventually, the aircraft will reach the end of its useful life (usually about 25 years unless extended by cargo conversion) and will retain a marginal value that represents the market worth of its various components and material. The differing value behavior of engines is apparent, however, when examining historical engine trading prices. Engines tend to hold their value since they can be restored to nearly new condition through overhaul, and will represent an increasing share of an aircraft's value over time. A lessor aiming to compete in the mid to late-life aircraft segment will therefore need to have a solid engine management capability.
Used Aircraft Values
The health of the airline industry during the late 1990s supported a general strengthening of the prevailing prices for used aircraft. Many banks and financial institutions were attracted to the aircraft financing sector and began to compete aggressively for available transactions. As a result, prices for used aircraft remained relatively strong. During the period from 2001 to 2004, following a sharp drop in airline demand for aircraft capacity, many surplus aircraft were parked, deliveries were deferred and some aircraft financiers with little asset management capability or asset diversification suffered substantial losses. Many banks and tax equity participants exited the market altogether and capital market transactions came to a halt. The concurrent slide in aircraft values, particularly for older and mid-life aircraft types, exacerbated the situation and trading activity of used aircraft slowed.
Aircraft that have suffered a deep and lasting reduction in both trading price and inherent value are older, less fuel-efficient early generation aircraft and types that no longer meet the current noise and emission standards in place in most of the developed world. Examples of these include aging models with disappearing operator bases such as the Lockheed L-1011 (84% of total fleet is retired or parked) and the McDonnell Douglas DC-10 (71% of total fleet is retired or parked) and DC-9 (66% of total fleet is retired or parked). Given the high fuel and maintenance expense generated by these aircraft types, it is increasingly likely that many of those that remain will exit service once in need of heavy maintenance.
Though still relatively young and considered middle generation, values for the fuel inefficient McDonnell Douglas MD-80 (944 in active service) variants also appear to be facing a permanent decline.
Following the rapid decline in values for most aircraft types during the period from 2002 to 2004, used trading prices for most aircraft types stabilized in 2005, and gained upward momentum in 2006. Values for popular new and used A320s and 737NGs continue to increase and will likely continue to exhibit marginal firming over the next several years. Meanwhile, values for aircraft such as the 737 Classics, 757 and 767-300ER have increased slightly following large declines in 2002 and should remain healthy before eventually depreciating further once the current supply shortage abates.
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AerCap
We are an integrated global aviation company with a leading market position in aircraft and engine leasing, trading and parts sales. We possess extensive aviation expertise that permits us to extract value from every stage of an aircraft's lifecycle across a broad range of aircraft and engine types. We also provide aircraft management services and perform aircraft and engine MRO services and aircraft disassemblies through our certified repair stations. We believe that by applying our expertise through an integrated business model, we will be able to identify and execute on a broad range of market opportunities that we expect will generate attractive returns for our shareholders.
We operate our business on a global basis, providing aircraft, engines and parts to customers in every major geographical region. As of March 31, 2007, we owned 140 aircraft and 65 engines, managed 98 aircraft, had 95 new aircraft and three new engines on order, had entered into purchase contracts for two new aircraft and had executed letters of intent to purchase an additional six aircraft. In addition, on May 11, 2007, we signed an agreement with Airbus for the purchase of an additional ten A330-200 aircraft, bringing our total firm order of A330-200 aircraft to 30 and the total number of new aircraft on order to 105. As of March 2007, we had the fourth largest aircraft leasing portfolio in the world and the third largest new aircraft order book among operating lessors, according to SH&E, in each case by number of aircraft.
We lease most of our aircraft to airlines under operating leases. Under an operating lease, the lessee is responsible for the maintenance and servicing of the equipment during the lease term and the lessor receives the benefit, and assumes the risk, of the residual value of the equipment at the end of the lease. As of March 31, 2007, our owned and managed aircraft and engines were leased to 105 commercial airline and cargo operator customers in 46 countries and are managed from our offices in The Netherlands, Ireland and the United States. We expect to expand our leasing activity in Asia and in China in particular through our AerDragon joint venture with China Aviation Supplies Import & Export Group Corporation, which commenced operations in October 2006.
We have the infrastructure, expertise and resources to execute a large number of diverse aircraft and engine transactions in a variety of market conditions. Our teams of dedicated marketing and asset trading professionals have been successful in leasing and trading our aircraft and engine portfolios. From January 1, 2003 to March 31, 2007, we have executed over 1,100 aircraft and engine transactions, including 283 aircraft leases, 275 engine leases, 158 aircraft purchase or sale transactions, 204 engine purchase or sale transactions and the disassembly of 54 aircraft and 139 engines. Between January 1, 2003 and March 31, 2007, our weighted average owned aircraft utilization rate was 98.6%.
In 2006, we generated total revenues of $814.4 million and net income of $108.9 million, which included charges for share-based compensation of $68.3 million, net of taxes, resulting in basic and fully-diluted earnings per share of $1.38. In the three months ended March 31, 2007, we generated total revenues of $309.5 million and net income of $60.6 million, resulting in basic and fully-diluted earnings per share of $0.71.
Our Competitive Strengths
We believe the following competitive strengths will allow us to capitalize on growth opportunities in the global commercial aviation market:
Ability to Manage Aircraft and Engines Profitably Throughout Their Lifecycle. We have an integrated business model that allows us to operate across the lifecycle of an aircraft or engine, from its initial
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purchase from a manufacturer through its leasing, sale or eventual disassembly for the sale of its parts. Our integrated business model includes:
Attractive, Modern and Fuel-Efficient Aircraft and Engines. We have assembled an aircraft portfolio focused on Airbus A320 family aircraft, which are among the most fuel-efficient and widely-used narrowbody passenger aircraft. As of March 31, 2007, the weighted average age, by book value, of aircraft in our owned fleet was 7.7 years. Our focus on young, modern, technologically-advanced and fuel-efficient aircraft provides us with an attractive asset portfolio that we believe we can leverage in the growing global airline market. We also own a large portfolio of CFM56 family engines, which are the most widely-used commercial jet engines.
Global Remarketing Capability and Diversified Customer Base. We maintain a high utilization rate for our assets by maintaining strong relationships with our existing and potential customers worldwide. As of March 31, 2007, we had 105 commercial airline and cargo operator customers in 46 countries, and no customer accounted for more than 10% of our revenues in each of 2006 and the three months ended March 31, 2007. The diversification of our customer base across varied geographic regions and markets reduces our exposure to risks associated with customer concentration and fluctuations in regional economic conditions. In addition, our global operations, knowledge of local regulatory frameworks and relationships with key market participants allow us to obtain and place our aircraft, engine and parts efficiently in all major global commercial aviation markets.
Active Aircraft and Engine Trading Business. We have an asset trading team of 19 professionals who are dedicated to identifying, analyzing and executing aircraft and engine acquisition and sale transactions. In addition, our dedicated airline marketing teams provide our asset trading team with market insight and purchase and sale opportunities arising from frequent dialogue with the global airline industry. Between January 1, 2003 and March 31, 2007 we purchased 77 aircraft, sold 81 aircraft, purchased 131 engines and sold 73 engines.
Substantial Size and Breadth of Operations. Our substantial size and breadth of operations allow us to:
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Efficient Access to Capital. We have $1.2 billion of revolving credit facilities that provide us with access to committed funding for the acquisition of a diverse range of new and used aircraft, engines and parts of any age. Since 1996, we have raised over $19.0 billion of funds in the global financial markets, including over $9 billion through initial issuances and refinancings in the aircraft securitization market. Securitizations allow companies to raise long-term, low-cost and non-recourse capital by pledging cash flows generated by an asset pool, such as aircraft leases. Most recently, in May 2007, we completed a $1.66 billion securitization of 70 aircraft subject to operating leases. Our substantial indebtedness could limit our ability to access funding for our growth. We seek to use structures such as securitizations and joint ventures to allow us to access capital efficiently and limit recourse by lenders to our assets.
Attractive Aircraft Management Business. As of March 31, 2007, we managed 98 aircraft primarily for securitization vehicles, our unconsolidated joint ventures and third parties. As a pioneer in the securitization market, we were the first sponsor of an aircraft securitization and we are a leading manager of aircraft securitization vehicles. We use our existing aircraft management infrastructure to provide aircraft management services at limited incremental cost to us. The management of aircraft for third parties also provides us with a more diverse portfolio of aircraft to market to our airline customers.
Experienced Management Team. Our management team, with an average of 17 years' experience in the aviation industry, has extensive expertise in aircraft and engine leasing, trading, MRO, technical management, financing and risk management across a broad range of aircraft and industry economic cycles.
Despite these competitive strengths, we face significant risks that could adversely affect our financial results and growth prospects, including risks related to our ability to profitably re-lease our aircraft, interest rates, supply and demand cycles in the aviation industry, the financial strength of our lessees, emerging market conditions, our integration of AeroTurbine, a decline in the value of our assets and competition. See "Risk Factors".
Our Business Strategy
We intend to pursue the following business strategies:
Leverage Our Ability to Manage Aircraft and Engines Profitably throughout their Lifecycle. We intend to continue to leverage our integrated business model by selectively:
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Our ability to profitably manage aircraft throughout their lifecycle depends in part on our ability to successfully lease aircraft and engines at profitable rates and our ability to source acquisition opportunities of new and used aircraft at favorable prices.
Expand Our Aircraft and Engine Portfolio. We intend to grow our portfolio of aircraft and engines through portfolio purchases, new aircraft purchases, airline refleetings, and other opportunistic aircraft and engine purchases. We will rely on our experienced team of aircraft and engine market professionals to identify and purchase assets we believe are being sold at attractive prices or that we believe will increase in demand and value. In addition, we will continue to rebalance our aircraft and engine portfolios through acquisitions, sales and selective disassemblies to maintain the appropriate mix of aviation assets to meet our customers' needs.
Focus on High Growth Markets. Although we maintain a geographically diverse portfolio, we focus on high growth airline markets such as the Asia-Pacific market. In May 2006, we entered into a joint venture with China Aviation Supplies Import & Export Group Corporation, a state-owned aviation service engaged in the import and export of civil aviation products and the leasing and maintenance of aircraft, engines and aviation parts. This joint venture enhances our presence in the increasingly important China market and will enhance our ability to lease our aircraft and engines throughout the entire Asia-Pacific region.
Enter into Joint Ventures to Obtain Economies of Scale. We intend to continue to leverage our leading market position, extensive knowledge of the aircraft and engine leasing markets and aircraft and engine management capabilities by entering into joint ventures that increase our purchasing power and our ability to obtain price discounts on large aircraft orders. For example, by structuring a large aircraft purchase from Airbus through a 50% owned consolidated joint venture, we were able to increase the number of aircraft we ordered from 35 to 70 and obtained significantly more favorable terms than would otherwise have been available to us. We expect to generate fees from our joint ventures by providing them with aircraft management services.
Obtain Maintenance Cost Savings. We intend to lower our aircraft and engine maintenance costs by using aircraft and engine parts we obtain from the selective disassembly of acquired and existing airframes and engines. We intend to achieve further maintenance cost savings by using our FAA and EASA certified repair station to perform a variety of value-added MRO services on our aircraft and engines that would otherwise be outsourced at significantly higher costs.
Acquire Complementary Businesses. We intend to selectively pursue acquisitions that we believe will enhance our ability to manage aircraft and engines profitably throughout their lifecycle. The synergies, economies of scale and operating efficiencies we expect to derive from our acquisitions will allow us to strengthen our competitive advantages and diversify our sources of revenue.
Aircraft
Overview
We operate our aircraft business on a global basis. As of March 31, 2007, we owned and managed 238 aircraft. We owned 136 aircraft in our aircraft business, managed 98 aircraft and had an additional four aircraft which we intend to disassemble for the sale of their parts or sell at the end of their leases. As of March 31, 2007, we leased these aircraft to 91 commercial airline and cargo operator customers in 45 countries. In addition, as of March 31, 2007, we had 75 new narrowbody aircraft and 20 new widebody aircraft on order, including 25 directly and 70 through our consolidated joint venture, AerVenture. We also entered into a purchase contract for two new aircraft and had executed letters of intent for the purchase of six additional aircraft. Including all owned and managed aircraft, aircraft under contract or letter of intent and aircraft in our order book, our portfolio totals 341 aircraft as of March 31, 2007.
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Over the life of the aircraft, we seek to increase the returns on our investments by managing our aircraft's lease rates, time off-lease, financing costs and maintenance costs, and by carefully timing their sale or disassembly. We lease most of our aircraft to airlines under operating leases. Under an operating lease, the lessee is responsible for the maintenance and servicing of the equipment during the lease term and the lessor receives the benefit, and assumes the risk, of the residual value of the equipment at the end of the lease. Rather than purchase their aircraft, many airlines operate their aircraft under operating leases because operating leases reduce their capital requirements and costs and allow them to manage their fleet more efficiently. Over the past 20 years, the world's airlines have increasingly turned to operating leases to meet their aircraft needs. According to SH&E, approximately 30% of the global aircraft fleet was operated under operating leases in 2006 and SH&E forecasts that 40% of the global aircraft fleet will be operated under operating leases within the next ten years. For a more detailed discussion of trends in the aviation industry, see "Aircraft, Engine and Aviation Parts IndustryAircraft Leasing Industry" above.
Our contract lease terms generally range from 12 months to 120 months. By varying our lease terms, we mitigate the effects of changes in cyclical market conditions at the time aircraft become eligible for re-lease. In periods of strong aircraft demand, we seek to enter into medium and long-term leases to lock-in the generally higher market lease rates during those periods, while, in periods of low aircraft demand we seek to enter into short-term leases to mitigate the effects of the generally lower market lease rates during those periods. In addition, we generally seek to reduce our leasing transition costs by entering into lease extensions rather than taking re delivery of the aircraft and leasing it to a new customer. The terms of our lease extensions reflect the market conditions at the time the lease extension is signed and typically contain different terms than the original lease.
Upon expiration of an operating lease, we extend the lease term, take redelivery of the aircraft, remarket and re-lease it to new lessees, sell the aircraft, or transfer the aircraft to our disassembly business for sale of its parts. Typically, we re-lease our leased aircraft well in advance of the expiration of the then current lease and deliver the aircraft to a new lessee in less than two months following redelivery by the prior lessee. During the period in which an aircraft is in between leases, we typically perform routine inspections and the maintenance necessary to place the aircraft in the required condition for delivery and, in some cases, make modifications requested by our next lessee.
Our extensive experience, global reach and operating capabilities allow us to rapidly complete numerous aircraft transactions, which enables us to increase the returns on our aircraft investments and reduce the time that our aircraft are not generating revenue for us. We successfully executed 491 aircraft transactions between January 1, 2003 and March 31, 2007 including 283 aircraft leases, 50 lease restructurings and 158 purchase and sale transactions.
The following tables set forth information regarding the aircraft transactions we have executed between January 1, 2003 and March 31, 2007, the number of initial leases and re-leases we entered into, the number of leases we extended, the number of leases we restructured, the number of aircraft we purchased and the number of aircraft we sold. The trends shown in the table reflect the execution
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of the various elements of our leasing strategy for our owned and managed portfolio, as described further below.
|
Owned Aircraft |
||||||||||||
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Activity |
2003 |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
Three months ended March 31, 2007 |
Total/Average |
|||||||
New leases | 2 | 5 | 11 | 15 | | (7) | 33 | ||||||
Re-leases | 10 | 28 | 9 | 16 | 3 | 66 | |||||||
Extensions of lease contracts | 1 | 7 | 28 | 15 | 1 | 52 | |||||||
Average lease term for new leases (months)(1) | 60.0 | 61.2 | 68.7 | 103.2 | | 82.7 | |||||||
Average lease term for re-leases (months)(1) | 30.8 | 38.1 | 50.6 | 58.7 | 64.0 | 44.9 | |||||||
Average lease term for lease extensions (months)(2) | 2.0 | (4) | 24.9 | 23.0 | 22.3 | 48.0 | 23.1 | ||||||
Lease restructurings | 23 | 9 | 6 | 1 | | 39 | |||||||
Aircraft purchases | 6 | 9 | 6 | 41 | 14 | 76 | |||||||
Aircraft sales | 5 | (5) | 9 | 21 | 17 | 5 | (6) | 57 | |||||
Average aircraft utilization rates(3) | 97.6 | % | 99.3 | % | 99.1 | % | 98.9 | % | 97.0 | % | 98.6 | % |
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|
Managed Aircraft |
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---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Activity |
2003 |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
Three months ended March 31, 2007 |
Total/Average |
||||||
New leases | | 1 | | | | 1 | ||||||
Re-leases | 21 | 19 | 23 | 9 | 5 | 77 | ||||||
Extensions of lease contracts | 7 | 10 | 21 | 14 | 2 | 54 | ||||||
Average lease term for new leases (months)(1) | | 72.0 | | | | 72.0 | ||||||
Average lease term for re-leases (months)(1) | 35.1 | 47.3 | 36.4 | 40.9 | 43.2 | 39.7 | ||||||
Average lease term for lease extensions (months)(2) | 17.3 | 20.2 | 30.7 | 21.5 | 42.0 | 25.0 | ||||||
Lease restructurings | 8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | | 11 | ||||||
Aircraft purchases | | | 1 | | | 1 | ||||||
Aircraft sales | | | 9 | 13 | 2 | 24 |
The tables above illustrate how we have implemented our leasing strategies in response to changing trends in the aircraft leasing market. For example, in 2004 in response to changing market conditions, several airlines reduced their excess capacity by not renewing their aircraft operating leases. We were able to lessen the effects of the low number of lease extensions by identifying airlines that were increasing their capacity, including low cost carriers, and re-leasing our aircraft to those airlines. In addition, since aircraft lease rates were relatively low in 2003 and 2004, we shortened the terms of our leases to position our portfolio to take advantage of an expected upturn in the aircraft leasing market which would result in higher lease rates in the future. In contrast, in 2005, as the commercial airline sector strengthened, we lengthened the terms of our owned aircraft leases to lock-in the generally higher lease rates prevailing in the market at the time. Leases of new aircraft generally have longer terms than used aircraft which are re-leased. The average lease term for new leases increased significantly in 2006 due to the fact that we contracted to lease six aircraft from our order book to one customer, each for nine years. We experienced a lower level of lease extension activity in 2006 as we had fewer aircraft requiring remarketing because of the high number of aircraft we released in 2005 that were scheduled to come off lease in 2006 and 2007. In the first quarter of 2007, lease terms for re-leases continued to increase with terms contracted between five and six years. No new aircraft leases were signed during the first quarter of 2007. Due to the high level of leasing activity in 2005 and 2006 as shorter-term leases entered into in 2002 and 2003 expired, and since, as of December 31, 2006, we had entered into leases for all but one of our new aircraft to be delivered before January 1, 2009, there was a lower amount of leasing activity in the three months ended March 31, 2007 compared to the prior periods. We expect new lease activity to increase in the remainder of 2007. For our managed aircraft, the average term of the extensions decreased in the year ended December 31, 2006 mainly due to two short extensions for Fokker aircraft, but increased in the first quarter of 2007.
Before making any decision to lease an aircraft, we perform a review of the prospective lessee, which generally includes reviewing financial statements, business plans, cash flow projections, maintenance records, operational performance histories, hedging arrangements for fuel, foreign currency and interest rates and relevant regulatory approvals and documentation. We also typically
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perform on-site credit reviews for new lessees which typically includes extensive discussions with the prospective lessee's management before we enter into a new lease. Depending on the credit quality and financial condition of the lessee, we may require the lessee to obtain guarantees or other financial support from an acceptable financial institution or other third parties.
We require our aircraft lessees to provide us with security deposits in order to protect the value of our assets. We require all of our lessees to provide a security deposit for their performance under their leases, including the return of the aircraft in the specified condition at the expiration of the lease. The size of the security deposit is typically equal to two months' rent.
All of our lessees are responsible for their maintenance costs during the lease term. Based on the credit quality of the lessee, we require some of our lessees to pay supplemental maintenance rent to cover scheduled major component maintenance costs. If a lessee pays the supplemental maintenance rent we reimburse them for their maintenance costs up to the amount of their supplemental maintenance rent payments. Under the terms of some of our leases, at lease expiration, to the extent that a lessee has paid us more supplemental maintenance rent than we have reimbursed them for their maintenance costs, we retain the excess rent. As of March 31, 2007, 44 of our lessees leasing 81 aircraft provided for the payment of supplemental maintenance rent. Whether a lessee pays supplemental maintenance rent or not, we typically agree to compensate a lessee for scheduled maintenance on airframe and engines related to the prior utilization of the aircraft. For this prior utilization, we have typically received compensation from prior lessees.
In all cases, we require the lessee to reimburse us for any costs we incur if the aircraft is not in the required condition upon redelivery, and we compensate the lessee to the extent the aircraft is returned in a better condition than required upon redelivery. All of our leases contain extensive provisions regarding our remedies and rights in the event of a default by the lessee, and specific provisions regarding the required condition of the aircraft upon its redelivery.
Our lessees are also responsible for compliance with all applicable laws and regulations governing the leased aircraft and all related costs. We require our lessees to comply with the FAA, EASA or their foreign equivalent standards.
During the term of our leases, some of our lessees have experienced financial difficulties resulting in the need to restructure their leases. Generally, our restructurings have involved a number of possible changes to the lease's terms, including the voluntary termination of leases prior to their scheduled expiration, the arrangement of subleases from the primary lessee to a sublessee, the rescheduling of lease payments and the exchange of lease payments for other consideration, including convertible bonds, warrants, shares and promissory notes. We generally seek to receive these and other marketable securities from our restructured leases, rather than deferred receivables. In some cases, we have been required to repossess a leased aircraft and in those cases, we have typically exported the aircraft from the lessee's jurisdiction to prepare it for remarketing. In the majority of these situations, we have obtained the lessee's cooperation and the return and export of the aircraft was completed without significant delay, generally within two months. In some situations, however, our lessees have not cooperated in returning aircraft and we have been required to take legal action. In connection with the repossession of an aircraft, we may be required to settle claims on the aircraft or to which the lessee is subject, including outstanding liens on the repossessed aircraft. Since our inception in 1995, we have repossessed 44 aircraft under defaulted leases with 19 different lessees in 14 jurisdictions.
Aircraft Portfolio and Existing Lessees
Our aircraft portfolio consists primarily of modern, technologically advanced and fuel-efficient narrowbody aircraft, with a particular concentration of Airbus A320 family. As of March 31, 2007, we owned and managed 238 aircraft. We owned 136 aircraft in our aircraft business, managed 98 aircraft and had an additional four aircraft which we intend to disassemble for the sale of their parts or sell at
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the end of their leases. Of the 238 aircraft, 211 were on operating lease, which does not include the four aircraft we intend to disassemble or sell, and 23 were off-lease (three owned and 20 managed). Of the 23 aircraft off-lease, four were subject to our regular remarketing efforts. With respect to the other 19 aircraft (all Fairchild Dornier 328s), we have been instructed by the client to market the aircraft for sale, rather than seek to re-lease them. As of March 31, 2007, we leased the 211 aircraft on operating leases to 91 commercial airline and cargo operator customers in 45 countries. The weighted average age of our 136 owned aircraft was 7.7 years as of March 31, 2007. We believe that we own one of the youngest aircraft fleets in the world.
The following table provides details regarding our aircraft portfolio by type of aircraft as of March 31, 2007.
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|
|
Managed portfolio |
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|
|
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|
Owned portfolio |
|
|
|
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|
|
Number of aircraft under purchase contract |
|
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Aircraft type |
Number of aircraft |
Percentage of total net book value |
Number of aircraft |
Number of aircraft on order |
Total owned, managed and ordered aircraft |
|||||||
Airbus A300 Freighter | 2 | 2.3 | % | | | | 2 | |||||
Airbus A319 | 10 | 10.1 | | 24 | (1) | | 34 | |||||
Airbus A320 | 53 | 35.8 | 13 | 50 | (2) | | 116 | |||||
Airbus A321 | 22 | 23.3 | 1 | 1 | (3) | | 24 | |||||
Airbus A330 | 9 | 12.7 | 1 | 20 | (4) | | 30 | |||||
Airbus A340 | 1 | 1.2 | 2 | | | 3 | ||||||
Boeing 737 | 20 | 10.0 | 30 | | 2 | 52 | ||||||
Boeing 767 | 1 | 1.1 | 2 | | | 3 | ||||||
Boeing 757 | 2 | 1.2 | 3 | | | 5 | ||||||
DHC Dash 8 | 1 | | | | | 1 | ||||||
Fokker 100 | 9 | 0.8 | 4 | | | 13 | ||||||
Fokker 70 | | | 2 | | | 2 | ||||||
MD-11 Freighter | 1 | 1.2 | 1 | | | 2 | ||||||
MD-83 | 1 | 0.1 | 9 | | | 10 | ||||||
MD-82 | 4 | 0.2 | 7 | | | 11 | ||||||
Fairchild Dornier 328 | | | 23 | | | 23 | ||||||
Total | 136 | (5) | 100.0 | % | 98 | 95 | 2 | 331 | ||||
In the future we may acquire additional freighter aircraft or convert some of our older A320 family passenger aircraft to freighter aircraft. We are currently in discussions with a third party to convert certain of our aircraft to freighter aircraft.
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Aircraft on Order
We have a large number of new aircraft on order, either directly or indirectly through our consolidated joint venture, AerVenture.
In 1999, we signed an aircraft purchase order with Airbus for the purchase of 32 new A320 family aircraft. As of March 31, 2007, five aircraft remained to be delivered under the agreement. The remaining aircraft consist of one A319 aircraft, three A320 aircraft and one A321 aircraft. All of these aircraft are schedule to be delivered before the end of 2007.
In January 2006, our consolidated joint venture, AerVenture, placed an order with Airbus for the purchase of 70 new A320 family aircraft. As of March 31, 2007, all of the aircraft remained to be delivered under the agreement. The AerVenture order consists of 23 A319 aircraft and 47 A320 aircraft. The initial delivery schedule for the AerVenture order includes 12 aircraft to be delivered before the end of 2008 and 58 aircraft to be delivered before the end of 2010.
In December 2006, we placed an order with Airbus to acquire 20 new A330-200 widebody aircraft. In May 2007, we added an additional ten A330-200 aircraft to this order. The delivery schedule for the 30 A330-200 aircraft order includes two aircraft to be delivered in 2008, eight aircraft in 2009, ten in 2010, four in 2011 and six in 2012.
Aircraft Subject to Purchase and Sale Agreements and Letters of Intent
In January 2007, we entered into a letter of intent for the sale of one A320 to our joint venture, AerDragon. This aircraft is expected to be delivered in August 2007.
In April 2007, we entered into purchase agreements for the purchase of two new Boeing 737-800 aircraft from another aircraft lessor. One aircraft was delivered from the manufacturer in June 2007 and the second aircraft is scheduled to be delivered in September 2007.
In May 2007, we entered into sale agreements for the sale of two A300 freighter aircraft. One of these aircraft is expected to be delivered to the purchaser in September 2007 and the second aircraft is expected to be delivered in September 2008.
In June 2007, we entered into a sale agreement for the sale of three A330-300 aircraft to a third party. These aircraft were delivered to the purchaser in July 2007.
In addition, during June 2007, we entered into sale agreements and delivered a Boeing 737-400 aircraft and an A321 aircraft to two purchasers.
As of May 31, 2007, AeroTurbine had letters of intent to purchase an additional seven aircraft and one airframe. The aircraft under letters of intent included three A320 aircraft, four Boeing 737-300 aircraft and the airframe of one Boeing 747-300. We intend to disassemble the aircraft and sell their parts or sell the aircraft. In addition we had letters of intent to sell one MD-87 aircraft and the airframe of one Boeing 747-300 aircraft to a third party. Although we expect to be able in each case to negotiate and agree on final documentation with respect to our letters of intent, we may not be able to do so and therefore these transactions may not in fact occur.
In addition, we have recently entered exclusive negotiations with an aircraft owner for the purchase of ten older aircraft, predominantly consisting of McDonnell Douglas MD-80 and Boeing 737 family aircraft. If we were to acquire these aircraft, at the end of their current lease terms, we would likely disassemble many or all of them and sell their component parts. If we are able to reach an agreement with the aircraft owner, we intend to close the transaction in the third quarter of 2007.
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Lessees
The following table sets forth by lessee the percentage of our owned aircraft portfolio lease revenue for the year ended December 31, 2006:
Lessee |
Percentage of 2006 lease revenue |
||
---|---|---|---|
Tombo Capital Corporation | 9.4 | % | |
Thai Airways International Public Co., Ltd. | 6.6 | ||
My Travel Airways PLC | 4.7 | ||
Wizz Air Hungary Ltd. | 4.6 | ||
Asiana Airlines Inc. | 4.0 | ||
Korean Air Lease & Finance Co., Ltd. | 4.0 | ||
Air Canada | 3.9 | ||
Kingfisher Airlines Ltd. | 3.8 | ||
Indian Airlines Ltd. | 3.7 | ||
British Midland Airways Ltd. | 3.4 | ||
SN Brussels(1) | 3.3 | ||
Bangkok Airways Co. | 3.2 | ||
Gemini Air Cargo Inc. | 3.1 | ||
Sri Lankan Airlines Ltd. | 2.5 | ||
British Mediterranean Airways Ltd. | 2.1 | ||
Société Air France | 2.0 | ||
US Airways | 2.0 | ||
Other(2) | 33.7 | ||
Total |
100.0 |
% |
|
We lease our aircraft to lessees located in numerous and diverse geographical regions and have focused our leasing efforts on the fast growing Asia-Pacific market.
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The following table sets forth by country the percentage of our owned aircraft lease revenues for the year ended December 31, 2006:
Country |
Percentage of 2006 lease revenue |
||
---|---|---|---|
United Kingdom | 11.6 | % | |
Thailand | 9.8 | ||
Japan | 9.5 | ||
India | 8.9 | ||
United States of America | 8.8 | ||
Republic of Korea | 8.0 | ||
Hungary | 4.6 | ||
Canada | 4.0 | ||
Belgium | 3.6 | ||
France | 3.4 | ||
Brazil | 2.7 | ||
Sri Lanka | 2.5 | ||
Turkey | 2.3 | ||
Indonesia | 2.0 | ||
El Salvador | 1.8 | ||
Germany | 1.8 | ||
Iceland | 1.7 | ||
Spain | 1.6 | ||
Jamaica | 1.1 | ||
British Virgin Islands | 1.1 | ||
Mexico | 1.1 | ||
Other(1) | 8.1 | ||
Total |
100.0 |
% |
|
For information regarding the commercial aviation industry generally and the markets our customers serve, see "Aircraft, Engine and Aviation Parts Industry".
As of March 31, 2007, leases representing approximately 43.2% of our lease revenues in 2006 were scheduled to expire before December 31, 2009. As of March 31, 2007, our 133 owned aircraft which are on lease (excluding the four aircraft that we intend to disassemble or sell at the end of their leases) had an average remaining lease period per aircraft of 33.4 months.
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The following table sets forth as of March 31, 2007, the number of leases that were scheduled to expire between March 31, 2007 and December 31, 2016 as a percentage of our 2006 lease revenue.
Year |
Percentage of 2006 lease revenue(1) |
Number of aircraft with leases expiring(3) |
|||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2007(2) | 5.2 | % | 11 | ||
2008 | 15.3 | 34 | |||
2009 | 22.7 | 34 | |||
2010 | 9.8 | 16 | |||
2011 | 11.4 | 15 | |||
2012 | 10.7 | 16 | |||
2013 | 5.0 | 5 | |||
2014 | 0.0 | 0 | |||
2015 | 1.6 | 1 | |||
2016 | 0.0 | 1 | |||
Total | 81.7 | % | 133 | ||
Aircraft Acquisitions and Dispositions
From January 1, 2003 to March 31, 2007, we purchased 77 aircraft and sold 81 aircraft. In addition, as of March 31, 2007 we had negotiated and entered into contracts to purchase an additional 95 new aircraft, 25 directly and 70 through a joint venture, entered into a purchase contract to purchase two new aircraft and have executed letters of intent to purchase an additional six aircraft. In addition, on May 11, 2007, we signed an agreement with Airbus for the purchase of an additional ten A330s, bringing the total number of new aircraft on order to 105. We have a portfolio management team of 19 professionals who are dedicated to sourcing, analyzing and executing aircraft and engine acquisition and disposition opportunities.
Due to the AeroTurbine Acquisition and our large order book of aircraft, we believe that we are well positioned to take advantage of trading opportunities and expand our aircraft portfolio. We believe that our global network of strong relationships with airlines, aircraft manufacturers, MRO service providers and commercial and financial institutions gives us a competitive advantage in sourcing and executing transactions.
We purchase new and used aircraft directly from aircraft manufacturers, airlines, financial investors, other aircraft leasing and finance companies. The aircraft we purchase are both on-lease and off-lease, depending on market conditions and the composition of our portfolio. We believe there are additional opportunities to purchase aircraft at attractive prices from other investors in aircraft assets who lack the infrastructure to manage their aircraft throughout their lifecycle. The buyers of our aircraft include airlines, investors and other aircraft leasing companies. We primarily acquire aircraft at attractive prices in two ways: by purchasing large quantities of aircraft directly from manufacturers to take advantage of volume discounts, and by purchasing portfolios consisting of aircraft of varying types and ages. In addition, we also opportunistically purchase individual aircraft that we believe are being sold at attractive prices, or that we expect will increase in demand and or residual value. Through our
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airline marketing team, which is in frequent contact with airlines worldwide, we are also able to identify attractive acquisition and disposition opportunities. We sell our aircraft when we believe the market price for the type of aircraft has reached its peak, or to rebalance the composition of our portfolio to meet changing customer demands.
Our dedicated, full-time portfolio management and trading group consists of marketing, financial, engineering, technical and credit professionals. Prior to a purchase, this group analyzes the aircraft's price, fit in our portfolio, specification/configuration, maintenance history and condition, the existing lease terms, financial condition and credit worthiness of the existing lessee, the jurisdiction of the lessee, industry trends, financing arrangements and the aircraft's redeployment potential and values, among other factors.
Our revolving credit facilities are designed to allow us to rapidly execute our trading strategies by providing us with large scale committed funding to acquire new and used aircraft, engines and parts. As of March 31, 2007, we had $599.9 million of committed undrawn credit facilities that allow us to purchase aircraft of up to 15 years of age and $184.3 million of committed undrawn credit facilities that allow us to purchase a broad variety of aircraft types of any age. In addition, in connection with the refinancing of Aircraft Lease Securitisation, we repaid $404.0 million net principal amount of indebtedness under our revolving credit facility, which we amended and restated, and borrowed $59.0 million under the amended and restated facility as of May 8, 2007. The Aircraft Lease Securitisation refinancing therefore increased our availability under the revolving credit facility from $599.9 million at March 31, 2007 to $941.0 million at May 8, 2007. We also have $204.7 million of undrawn amounts under a borrowing facility with commercial banks, which is guaranteed by European export credit agencies.
Joint Ventures
We expect to conduct an increasing portion of our business in the future through joint ventures. Entering into joint venture arrangements allows us to:
AerVenture. In December 2005, we established AerVenture. In January 2006, LoadAir, an investment and construction company based in Kuwait City, purchased a 50% equity interest in AerVenture. We have invested $25.0 million in AerVenture and LoadAir has invested $25.0 million in AerVenture. We have each agreed to make additional equity contributions of up to $90.0 million. We consolidate AerVenture's financial results in our financial statements. We have developed AerVenture as a joint venture because this structure allows us to leverage our buying power to achieve more favorable aircraft acquisition terms. We have entered into exclusive agreements to provide management and marketing services to AerVenture in return for aircraft management fees and specified incentive fees which are tied to the profitability of AerVenture. Payments under these agreements will not provide any additional revenues as a result of consolidation. These agreements may be terminated by AerVenture in 2014.
In January 2006, AerVenture placed an order with Airbus for 70 new A320 family aircraft which will be delivered between 2007 and 2010. AerVenture closed a credit facility for a total amount of $119.0 million that will finance the pre-delivery payments on the first 30 aircraft to be delivered. Upon delivery of the aircraft, AerVenture will be required to arrange financing to cover the entire purchase price, including refinancing the predelivery payments, which is not covered by the joint venture's equity contributions. The initial delivery schedule includes 12 aircraft to be delivered before the end of 2008 and 58 aircraft to be delivered before the end of 2010.
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AerDragon. In May 2006, we signed a joint venture agreement with China Aviation Supplies Import & Export Group Corporation and affiliates of Calyon establishing AerDragon. AerDragon consists of two companies, Dragon Aviation Leasing Company limited, based in Beijing with a registered capital of $10.0 million and AerDragon Aviation Partners Limited, based in Ireland with a registered capital of $50.0 million. AerDragon is 50% owned by China Aviation and 25% owned by each of us and Calyon. Following receipt of the local Chinese approvals required for it to begin operations, AerDragon commenced operations in October 2006. We will act as the exclusive aircraft manager for the joint venture. This contract may be terminated upon the earlier to occur of either July 1, 2009, or the occurrence of specified events, such as AerDragon developing the expertise to manage its own aircraft. In the future, one of the main sources of aircraft for AerDragon is likely to be the acquisition of aircraft through sale leaseback transactions with Chinese airlines. This joint venture enhances our presence in the increasingly important China market and will enhance our ability to lease our aircraft and engines throughout the entire Asia-Pacific region. We do not consolidate AerDragon's financial results in our financial statements. AerDragon acquired its first aircraft, an Airbus A320 aircraft, in February 2007. This aircraft was acquired directly from Airbus through an assignment of our purchase right under our 1999 agreement with Airbus.
Annabel and Bella. In 2005, we signed a joint venture agreement with Deucalion Capital Limited to form the Annabel joint venture in which we hold a 25% equity interest. Annabel purchased a used A340 aircraft in 2005. The aircraft is on lease to Sri Lanka Airlines through 2008. In 2006, we signed a joint venture agreement with Deucalion to form the Bella joint venture in which we hold a 50% equity interest. Bella purchased two used Airbus A330-300 aircraft in April 2006, one of which is on lease through 2009 and one of which is on lease through 2013. We receive fee income for providing aircraft management services to both Annabel and Bella. We consolidate Bella's financial results in our financial statements but do not consolidate Annabel's financial results in our financial statements. We do not expect these joint ventures to acquire any additional aircraft.
Relationship with Airbus
We have a close and longstanding mutually advantageous relationship with Airbus. Our relationship dates back to our formation, when DaimlerChrysler AG (formerly known as Daimler-Benz AG), a principal shareholder of European Aeronautic Defense & Space CompanyEADS N.V., an 80% shareholder of Airbus, was one of our founding shareholders. In the last 10 years, we, directly or through our joint ventures, have contracted to purchase over 100 new commercial jet aircraft from Airbus and 24 used aircraft from Airbus. We maintain a wide-ranging dialogue with Airbus seeking mutually beneficial opportunities such as taking delivery of new aircraft on short notice and purchasing used aircraft from airlines seeking to renew their fleet with Airbus aircraft.
Aircraft Services
We are one of the aircraft industry's leading providers of aircraft asset management and corporate services to securitization vehicles, joint ventures and other third parties. As of March 31, 2007, we had aircraft management and administration service contracts with 14 parties covering over 350 aircraft (including the 70 aircraft on order by AerVenture) two of which accounted for 71% of our aircraft services revenue in the three months ended March 31, 2007. We categorize our aircraft services into aircraft asset management, administrative services and cash management services. Since we have an established operating system to provide these services to manage our own aircraft assets, the incremental cost of providing aircraft management services to securitization vehicles, joint ventures and third parties is limited. Our primary aircraft asset management activities are:
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We charge fees for our aircraft management services based primarily on a mixture of fixed retainer amounts, but we also receive performance based fees related to the managed aircrafts' lease revenue or sale proceeds, or specific upside sharing arrangements.
We provide cash management and administrative services to securitization vehicles and joint ventures. As of March 31, 2007, we had four cash management agreements with clients holding an aggregate of 269 aircraft in their portfolios and five administrative agency agreements with clients holding an aggregate of 311 aircraft in their portfolios. Cash management services consist of treasury services such as the financing, refinancing, hedging and on going cash management of these vehicles. Our administrative services consist primarily of accounting and secretarial services, including the preparation of budgets and financial statements, and liaising with, in the case of securitization vehicles, the rating agencies.
Engine and Parts
Overview
On April 26, 2006, we acquired all of the share capital of AeroTurbine. AeroTurbine was established in 1997 and is engaged in engine trading and leasing and the disassembly of airframes and engines for the sale of their component parts to the global aviation industry. We acquired AeroTurbine to:
To facilitate the integration of AeroTurbine, we entered into three year employment contracts with key members of its senior management. In addition, our indirect shareholders granted key members of AeroTurbine's senior management indirect equity interests in us, so that they share a vested interest in achieving the successful integration of our aircraft business with AeroTurbine's engine and parts business.
Engine Acquisitions and Dispositions
Engine acquisitions and dispositions are a core part of our engine and parts business. We believe that our market insight and recurring customer relationships have been the key factors underlying our success in this business. In addition, we opportunistically acquire engines that require maintenance work and refurbish those engines in our MRO operations. By pursuing these acquisition strategies, we believe we have been able to acquire our engines at attractive prices.
We purchase engines for which there is high market demand or for which we believe demand will increase in the future. We opportunistically sell and exchange engines when we believe that the realizable value from a sale or exchange will equal or exceed the realizable value that we would expect to receive from leasing or disassembling the engine for the sale of its parts.
In determining whether to purchase or sell an engine, we assess the value of each engine according to a number of factors, including its hardware composition, airworthiness directive compliance and
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service bulletin status, life-limited parts thresholds, historical maintenance documentation, performance data and material certifications.
Our extensive experience buying, selling, leasing, repairing and disassembling engines for their parts has provided us with in-depth trading and management expertise across the most popular commercial product lines manufactured by General Electric, CFM International, Pratt & Whitney, Rolls-Royce and International Aero Engines. We conduct extensive technical and maintenance records due diligence before we purchase each engine. Our experienced team of dedicated acquisition and maintenance professionals is composed of 78 licensed aircraft and engine mechanics and 11 aircraft maintenance record specialists who track and document the maintenance history of each engine that is to be acquired. We are frequently able to correct or reconstruct engine maintenance records, which can lower the maintenance and acquisition cost of our engines and aircraft. Since commencing operations in 1997, AeroTurbine has sold over 300 engines, generating revenues in excess of $250 million.
We typically finance the purchase of engines with borrowed funds and internally generated cash flows. We believe that we are able to react more rapidly to engine acquisition opportunities than most of our competitors because we have substantial committed financing and can often identify, conduct due diligence and close on prospective acquisitions in less than one week. We have a $220.0 million committed revolving facility which we can use to fund acquisitions of aircraft, engines and aircraft parts. As of March 31, 2007, we had $184.3 million of funds available under this revolving facility.
Engine Portfolio
We maintain a diverse inventory of high-demand, modern and fuel-efficient engines. As of March 31, 2007, we owned 65 engines and had three new engines on order through AerVenture and one engine under letter of intent by AeroTurbine. Our engine portfolio consists primarily of CFM56 series engines, one of the most widely used engines in the commercial aviation market. As of March 31, 2007, 53 of our 65 engines were CFM56 series engines manufactured by CFM International. In August 2006, AerVenture entered into a contract with CFM International to acquire four new spare CFM 56-5B and two new spare CFM 56-7B engines. These engines are scheduled to be delivered over the next 24 months and will be either leased or sold.
We expect to expand and further diversify our engine portfolio in the future through engine acquisitions and aircraft disassemblies. As our aircraft portfolio ages, and specific aircraft become suitable for disassembly, we intend to disassemble such aircraft and remove high demand engines for addition to our engine portfolio, while the remaining airframes and engines will be disassembled for sale of their component parts.
We have the ability to perform limited MRO services on CFM56 series engines, which comprise most of the engines in our engine portfolio. As we obtain sufficient numbers of other engine models, we intend to further develop additional in-house MRO capabilities to achieve greater cost advantages.
Airframe and Engine Disassembly and Parts Sales
Over time, the combined value of a typical aircraft's parts will eventually exceed the value of the aircraft as a whole operating asset, at which time the aircraft may be retired from service. Traditional aircraft lessors and airlines often retire their aircraft by selling or consigning them to companies that specialize in aircraft and engine disassembly. The AeroTurbine Acquisition has allowed us to incorporate this valuable revenue source into our integrated business model, which is focused on managing aircraft and engines throughout their lifecycle.
We sell airframe parts primarily to aircraft parts distributors and MRO service providers. Airframe parts comprise a broad range of aircraft sub-component groups, including avionics, hydraulics and pneumatic systems, auxiliary power units, landing gear, interiors, flight control surfaces, windows and panels. We have disassembled 76 aircraft for the sale of their parts and we believe that we were among the first to voluntarily and strategically disassemble Boeing 737-300 and Airbus A320 family aircraft.
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Our aircraft disassembly operations are focused on the strategic acquisition of aircraft with engines that are among the most sought after in the secondary market.
We are focused on developing long-term supply relationships with clients that perform MRO services on aircraft and engines. Parts sales allow us to increase the value of our aircraft and engine assets by putting each sub-component (engines, airframes and related parts) to its most profitable use (sale, lease, and/or disassembly for parts sales). In addition, this capability provides us with an additional cost advantage over our non-integrated competitors by providing us with a critical source of low cost replacement engines and parts to support the maintenance of our aircraft and engine portfolios.
Prior to the acquisition of our Goodyear facility, we outsourced the physical disassembly of our airframes into parts, but sold the airframe parts ourselves.
Engine Leasing
Generally, it is uneconomical for aircraft operators with small aircraft fleets to own the quantity of spare engines required to adequately cover their operational requirements. As a result, aircraft operators often lease spare engines when they send out their engines for off-site MRO. Spare engines are generally leased either directly from engine lessors like us, or from the MRO service provider that is repairing the aircraft operator's engine. To meet their clients' needs, MRO service providers often lease engines from engine lessors. We are focused on the short-term engine lease market with a typical lease term of 60 to 180 days. Short-term engine leases tend to have higher lease rates than long-term leases, because lessees require the engines on short notice and are willing to pay a premium for the flexibility of a short term lease. Engines subject to short-term leases typically spend more time off-lease, while they are released with greater frequency.
The short-term engine leasing market has also developed in part in response to airlines' need to rapidly place aircraft back in service in the event of an unexpected engine problem. Short-term engine leases provide an alternative to owning spare engines or entering into long-term leases, where the engines can needlessly sit idle for long periods. To meet clients' urgent engine leasing needs, we typically maintain a substantial inventory of ready-to-lease engines in our off lease inventory. We believe that our ability to modify and configure most of our lease portfolio engines is an important competitive advantage, since it can facilitate the rapid installation of our engines onto our customers' aircraft. In addition, we have the capability to provide limited on-site maintenance and repair for most of our leased engines which, in some circumstances, enables us to facilitate the return to service of our customers' grounded aircraft.
Our engine leasing customer base is comprised of a wide variety of airlines and cargo and charter operators, in addition to MRO service providers, and other aircraft and engine leasing companies. As of March 31, 2007, we had engines on lease to 21 customers located in 14 countries.
We generally receive a fixed rental payment for our leased engines plus a variable rental payment based on the use of the engine. We typically receive monthly rent for our engines in advance, and additional rent for actual engine operation in arrears to compensate us for the anticipated future maintenance costs of such engines. Our engine lessees generally provide us with a security deposit in the amount of two months rent, in addition to which we receive the first month's rental payment in advance.
On a few occasions, our engine lessees have experienced financial difficulties, requiring us to terminate or restructure our engine leases with the lessee. Over the past eight years, we have only had to resort to legal action for the repossession of engines with one of our lease customers.
Airframe MRO Capability
On August 4, 2006, we leased an aircraft MRO facility located in Goodyear, Arizona and hired 74 of the employees working at the facility. In connection with this lease, we acquired an additional certified repair station which is certified by the FAA and EASA and associated equipment which
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permits us to perform a variety of MRO services on commercial transport aircraft, including aircraft heavy maintenance and limited powerplant repair. The Goodyear facility includes a 226,000 square foot hangar with the ability to house up to four widebody aircraft, or eight narrowbody aircraft for the purpose of performing heavy maintenance repairs, aircraft disassemblies and engine changes. The ramp area outside of the hangar can facilitate both short and long term storage of up to 14 aircraft. In addition to the hangar and ramp space, there is a significant storage field capable of storing over 100 aircraft. This transaction was primarily made to reduce our cost of aircraft disassembly and to support the expansion of our airframe parts distribution business. During the nine months that we have been operating at the facility, we have disassembled 18 aircraft and have performed a heavy airframe maintenance, or a C2 check, on an AerCap managed aircraft and "return to service" checks on two MD11 and two DC9 aircraft.
Recent Developments
AeroTurbine is considering acquiring a company that specializes in airframe and engine rotable repair, sale and leasing to end-user customers. If we acquire such a company, we would broaden the base of our existing airframe and engine rotable distribution channels into which we sell parts stemming from aircraft and engine disassembly, from sales made primarily to resellers to include sales made to end-user airlines and operators, which we believe will result in higher margins. We are currently in discussions with one company and are in the process of gathering preliminary information. We anticipate that if we were to acquire this company, our initial investment would range from $5 million to $20 million.
Our Audit Committee recently completed an independent investigation related to alleged improper accounting matters at AeroTurbine. In particular, upon receipt of allegations from an AeroTurbine employee, our Audit Committee appointed independent counsel, who retained independent accountants, to assist with the investigation. Based upon the findings of the independent counsel and accountants, our Audit Committee determined, and our Board of Directors agreed, that the allegations are without foundation.
Financing
Our management analyzes sources of financing based on the pricing and other terms and conditions in order to optimize the return on our investments. We have the ability to access the bank, governmental secured debt, securitization and debt capital markets. We generally do not engage in financing transactions for individual aircraft or engines. In April 2006, we entered into a $1.0 billion revolving credit facility with a syndicate of banks led by UBS to facilitate our growth strategy and the acquisition of aircraft up to 15 years of age. Simultaneously with the AeroTurbine Acquisition and the closing of the UBS facility, we put in place a $171.0 million facility which was later increased to $220.0 million that enables us to acquire eligible aircraft engines and parts of any age. These facilities provide us with large scale committed financing that will allow us to rapidly execute aircraft portfolio purchases.
Once we obtain sufficient aircraft through our revolving credit facilities, we generally leverage our extensive financing experience and access to the securitization and other long-term debt markets to obtain long-term, lower cost non-recourse financing. Since 1996, we have raised over $19.0 billion of funding in the global financial markets including over $9 billion of funds through initial issuances and refinancings in the aircraft securitization market. Most recently, in May 2007, we completed a $1.66 billion securitization of 70 aircraft subject to operating leases. This securitization was a refinancing of our 2005 securitization. In the refinancing, we added 28 aircraft to the securitization, including 24 which had been previously secured by a variety of other debt structures and four which had yet to be purchased by us.
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Subsidiaries
Although AerCap Holdings N.V.'s major subsidiaries are AeroTurbine Inc., AerCap CNW Finance Ltd., Orchid Aircraft Leasing Limited, AerCap Ireland Ltd. and AerCap B.V., AerCap Holdings N.V. has numerous other subsidiaries, none of which contribute more than 5% of our consolidated revenues or represent more than 5% of our total assets.
Employees
The table below provides the number of our employees at each of our geographical locations as of the dates indicated.
Location |
December 31, 2004 |
December 31, 2005 |
December 31, 2006 |
March 31, 2007 |
||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Amsterdam, The Netherlands | 80 | 71 | 71 | 70 | ||||
Shannon, Ireland | 23 | 27 | 37 | 38 | ||||
Fort Lauderdale, FL | 10 | 11 | 13 | 14 | ||||
Miami, FL(1) | 99 | 124 | 163 | 169 | ||||
Goodyear, AZ(2) | | | 67 | 70 | ||||
Total | 212 | 233 | 351 | 361 | ||||
None of our employees are covered by a collective bargaining agreement and we believe that we maintain excellent employee relations. By law we are required to have a works council for our operations in The Netherlands, and we anticipate that elections with respect to the works council will take place in the third quarter of 2007. A works council is an employee organization that is granted certain statutory rights to be involved in certain of the company's decision making processes. The exercise of such rights, however, must take into account the interests of the company and its shareholders.
Competition
The aircraft leasing and sales business is highly competitive. We face competition from aircraft manufacturers, financial institutions, other leasing companies, aircraft brokers and airlines. Competition for a leasing transaction is based on a number of factors, including delivery dates, lease rates, term of lease, other lease provisions, aircraft condition and the availability in the market place of the types of aircraft that can meet the needs of the customer. As a result of our geographical reach, diverse aircraft portfolio and success in remarketing our aircraft, we believe we are a strong competitor in all of these areas; however, some of our competitors such as GE Commercial Aviation Service and International Lease Finance Corporation, have significantly larger and more diversified aircraft portfolios and greater access to financing than we do. As of March 31, 2007, GE Commercial Aviation Service and International Lease Finance Corporation together, according to Airclaims Client Aviation System Enquiry Database, represent approximately 44.0% of the operating lease market and 44.5% of the orders from Boeing and Airbus held by operating lessors.
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The engine leasing industry is fragmented and is also highly competitive. The engine leasing industry is generally divided into two principal competitive segments: short-term engine lessors that focus on providing temporary spare engine support while a customer's engine requires off-site MRO (typical 60 to 90 day lease periods) and long-term engine lessors that focus on providing spare or primary engines to operators as an alternative to ownership of the engine by the lessee (typical lease periods of over one year). Though we are much more active in the short-term engine leasing segment, we compete in both lease segments. The engine leasing market is primarily comprised of six major engine leasing companies, including ourselves. We believe we are a strong competitor, particularly in the short-term engine leasing segment, due to our rapid response in-house MRO capabilities; however, some of our competitors such as GE Engine Leasing, Shannon Engine Support, Engine Lease Finance, Pratt & Whitney Engine Leasing LLC, Rolls Royce and Partners Finance and Willis Lease Finance, have significantly larger and more diversified engine portfolios and greater access to financing than we do. We also encounter competition from airlines, financial institutions, engine brokers, consignment agencies and special purpose entities with investment objectives similar to ours.
The aircraft parts market is generally divided into two principal segments, consisting of (i) airframe parts sales and (ii) engine parts sales specialists. While we compete in both markets with a few large companies, we also separately compete with numerous other parts sales organizations, MRO service providers, original equipment manufacturers, commercial airlines and many smaller competitors primarily in the U.S. and Europe. Additionally, there are numerous small brokers and traders that generally sell from limited inventories and participate in niche markets. Competition in the aircraft and engine parts markets is based on quality, ability to provide a timely and consistent source of materials, ability to provide a multiple range of desirable products, speed of delivery and pricing.
Insurance
Our lessees are required under our leases to bear responsibility, through an operational indemnity subject to customary exclusions, and to carry insurance for, any liabilities arising out of the operation of our aircraft or engines, including any liabilities for death or injury to persons and damage to property that ordinarily would attach to the operator of the aircraft or engine. In addition, our lessees are required to carry other types of insurance that are customary in the air transportation industry, including hull all risks insurance for both the aircraft and each engine whether or not installed on our aircraft, hull war risks insurance covering risks such as hijacking, terrorism, confiscation, expropriation, nationalization and seizure (in each case at a value stipulated in the relevant lease which typically exceeds the net book value by 10%, subject to adjustment in certain circumstances) and aircraft spares insurance and aircraft third party liability insurance, in each case subject to customary deductibles. We are named as an additional insured on liability insurance policies carried by our lessees, and we and/or our lenders are designated as a loss payee in the event of a total loss of the aircraft or engine. We monitor the compliance by our lessees with the insurance provisions of our leases by securing confirmation of coverage from the insurance brokers. We also purchase insurance which provides us with coverage when our aircraft or engines are not subject to a lease or where a lessee's policy lapses for any reason. In addition we carry customary insurance for our property and parts inventory, and we also maintain customary product liability insurance covering liabilities arising from our aircraft, engine and aviation parts trading activities. Insurance experts advise and make recommendations to us as to the appropriate amount of insurance coverage that we should obtain.
Regulation
While the air transportation industry is highly regulated, since we do not operate aircraft, we generally are not directly subject to most of these regulations. However, our lessees are subject to extensive regulation under the laws of the jurisdiction in which they are registered and in which they
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operate. These regulations, among other things, govern the registration, operation and maintenance of our aircraft and engines. Most of our aircraft are registered in the jurisdiction in which the lessee of the aircraft is certified as an air operator. Both our aircraft and engines are subject to the airworthiness and other standards imposed by our lessees' jurisdictions of operation. Laws affecting the airworthiness of aviation assets are generally designed to ensure that all aircraft, engines and related equipment are continuously maintained in proper condition to enable safe operation of the aircraft. Most countries' aviation laws require aircraft and engines to be maintained under an approved maintenance program having defined procedures and intervals for inspection, maintenance and repair.
In addition, under our leases, we may be required in some instances to obtain specific licenses, consents or approvals for different aspects of the leases. These required items include consents from governmental or regulatory authorities for certain payments under the leases and for the import, re-export or deregistration of the aircraft and engines. Also, to perform some of our cash management services and insurance services from Ireland under our management arrangements with our joint ventures and securitization entities, we are required to have a license from the Irish regulatory authorities which we have obtained.
With regard to our MRO activities, we maintain FAA and EASA certifications to conduct limited repair station tasks on engines. These certifications are subject to periodic review, and involve regulatory oversight and audit of the respective personnel and procedures utilized to conduct MRO services to aircraft, engines and components thereof, so as to ensure that our repair station managers and mechanics are properly qualified to perform the work for which we are certified. In addition, our MRO facility is subject to environmental regulation regarding, among other things, the use, storage and disposal of certain hazardous material.
Facilities
We lease our 30,000 square foot headquarters in Amsterdam, The Netherlands under a six year lease which began January 1, 2004. We also lease a 31,000 square foot facility in Shannon, Ireland where we conduct our aircraft management business. The Shannon facility is under a 20 year lease which began January 26, 2000 with an option to terminate after ten years. In addition, we lease an 8,000 square foot facility in Fort Lauderdale, Florida under a ten year lease which began in February 1999. We believe that our facilities in Amsterdam, Ireland and Fort Lauderdale are sufficient for our operations.
We have a ten year lease, which began on January 1, 2004 for a 150,000 square foot complex located near the Miami International Airport that we use as an office and warehouse. We lease our Goodyear facility, which includes a 226,000 square foot hangar and substantial additional space for aircraft outdoor storage, pursuant to a long-term lease that expires in 2026.
In addition to the above facilities, we also lease small offices in Beijing, China and Brighton, U.K.
Trademarks
We have registered the "AerCap" name with WIPO International (Madrid) Registry and the Benelux Merkenbureau. We have made an application to register the "AerCap" name with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The application is currently pending. We have registered the "AeroTurbine" name with the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
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Litigation
In the ordinary course of our business, we are a party to various legal actions, which we believe are incidental to the operation of our business. Except as disclosed below, we believe that the outcome of the proceedings to which we are currently a party will not have a material adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations and cash flows.
VASP Litigation
We leased 13 aircraft and three spare engines to VASP, a Brazilian airline. In 1992, VASP defaulted on its lease obligations and we commenced litigation against VASP to repossess our aircraft. In 1992, we obtained a preliminary injunction for the repossession and export of 13 aircraft and three spare engines from VASP. We repossessed and exported the aircraft and engines in 1992. VASP appealed this decision. In 1996, the High Court of the State of Sao Paulo ruled in favor of VASP on its appeal. We were instructed to return the aircraft and engines to VASP for lease under the terms of the original lease agreements. The High Court also granted VASP the right to seek damages in lieu of the return of the aircraft and engines. Since 1996 we have pursued this case in the Brazilian courts through various motions and appeals. On March 1, 2006, the Superior Court of Justice dismissed our most recent appeal and on April 5, 2006 a special panel of the Superior Court of Justice confirmed the Superior Court of Justice decision. On May 15, 2006 we appealed this decision to the Federal Supreme Court. On February 23, 2006, VASP commenced a procedure for the calculation of the award for damages and has appointed an expert to assist the court in calculating damages. Both we and VASP have the right to appoint our own expert to assist the court appointed expert in this process. Our external legal counsel has advised us that even if we lose on the merits, they do not believe that VASP will be able to demonstrate any damages. We continue to actively pursue all courses of action that may be available to us and intend to defend our position vigorously.
We are currently pursuing claims for damages in the English courts against VASP based on the damages we incurred as a result of the default by VASP on its lease obligations. In October 2006, the English Courts approved our motion to serve process upon VASP in Brazil. VASP will be served process in Brazil, by means of a rogatory letter which is currently being processed before the Brazilian Superior Court of Justice. Our management, based on the advice of external legal counsel, has determined that it is not necessary to make any provisions for this litigation.
Swedish Tax Dispute
In 2001, Swedish tax authorities challenged the position we took in tax returns we filed for the years 1999 and 2000 with respect to certain deductions. In accordance with Swedish law, we made a guaranty payment to the tax authority of $16.8 million in 2003. We appealed the decision of the tax authorities, and, in August 2004, a Swedish Court issued a ruling in our favor which resulted in a tax refund of $19.9 million (which included interest and the effect of foreign exchange movements for the intervening period). In September 2004, the Swedish tax authorities appealed the decision of the Court and filed an appeal with the Administrative Court of Appeal in Sweden. We have responded to this appeal and have requested an oral hearing on the matter. The Court has responded that it will schedule an oral hearing, but we have not yet received notice of the timing of such hearing. Our management, based on the advice of our tax advisors, has determined that it is not necessary to make any provisions for this tax dispute.
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Export Credit Facility Financings
General. In April 2003, we entered into an $840.0 million export credit facility for the financing of up to 20 Airbus A320 aircraft. Funding under the facility is provided by commercial banks, but the repayment is guaranteed by European export credit agencies. In January 2006, the export credit facility was amended and extended to cover an additional nine aircraft and its size increased to a maximum of $1.2 billion. The terms of the lending commitment in the export credit facility are such that the export credit agencies only approve funding for aircraft that are due for delivery on a six-months rolling basis and have no obligation to fund deliveries beyond that period. At March 31, 2007, we had financed 17 aircraft under the April 2003 export credit facility. We had $580.6 million of loans outstanding under our April 2003 export credit facility and the previous export credit facilities as of March 31, 2007.
Interest Rate. Set forth below are the interest rates for our export credit facilities.
|
Amount outstanding at March 31, 2007 |
Interest rate |
|||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
(US dollars in thousands) |
|
|||
Floating Rate Tranches: | $ | 146,372 | Three-month LIBOR plus 0.12% | ||
387,921 | Three-month LIBOR plus 0.25% | ||||
46,293 | Three-month LIBOR plus 0.30% | ||||
Purchase Accounting Fair Value Adjustments | (9,954 | ) | |||
Total: | $ | 570,632 | |||
Maturity Date. We are obligated to repay principal on the export credit facility over a 12-year term.
Collateral. The export credit facilities require legal title to the aircraft be transferred to and held by a special purpose company controlled by the respective lenders. We have entered into lease agreements on these aircraft which transfer the risk and rewards of ownership of the aircraft to AerCap. The obligations outstanding under the export credit facilities are secured by, among other things, a pledge of the shares of the company which holds legal title to the aircraft financed under the facility. Each subsidiary's obligations under the financings are guaranteed by AerCap Holdings N.V.
Certain Covenants. The export credit facilities contain affirmative covenants customary for secured financings. The facilities also contain net worth financial covenants. In addition, loans under the 2003 export credit facilities contain change of control provisions that grant the lenders the right to prepayment of their loans in the event of a change of control, unless the lenders consent to the change of control, which was obtained in connection with the 2005 Acquisition. A change of control occurs under our April 2003 export credit facility if our shares cease to be listed on The New York Stock Exchange unless, at the time our shares cease to be listed on The New York Stock Exchange, at least 66.66% of our ordinary shares are owned and controlled by one or more shareholders rated at least BBB- by Standard & Poor's Ratings Services and Baa3 or more by Moody's Investors Service, Inc.
Aircraft Lease Securitisation
General. On May 8, 2007, we completed a refinancing of our Aircraft Lease Securitisation securitization with the issuance of $1.66 billion of securitized notes in one class of AAA-rated class G-3 floating rate notes. The proceeds from the refinancing were used to redeem all outstanding Aircraft Lease Securitisation debt, other than the most junior class of notes, to refinance the indebtedness that had been incurred to purchase 24 previously acquired aircraft, and to finance the purchase of four
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additional new aircraft, increasing Aircraft Lease Securitisation's aircraft portfolio size to 70 aircraft. The primary source of payments on the notes is lease payments on the aircraft owned by the subsidiaries of Aircraft Lease Securitisation. We retained the most junior class of notes in the securitization, as a result of which we still consolidate Aircraft Lease Securitisation's results in our financial statements.
MBIA Insurance Corporation issued a financial guaranty insurance policy to support the payment of interest when due and principal on the final maturity on the new notes, which are rated Aaa and AAA by Moody's Investors Service and Standard & Poor's Ratings Services, respectively.
Liquidity. Calyon provided a liquidity facility in the amount of $72.0 million, which may be drawn upon to pay expenses of Aircraft Lease Securitisation and its subsidiaries, senior hedge payments and interest on the new senior class of notes.
Interest Rate. Set forth below are the interest rates for our classes of notes.
|
Amount outstanding at May 31, 2007 |
Interest rate |
|||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
(US dollars in thousands) |
|
|||
Class G-3 Notes | $ | 1,660,000 | One-month LIBOR plus 0.26% | ||
Total | $ | 1,660,000 | |||
Aircraft Management Services. We provide lease and aircraft management and re-leasing and remarketing services for Aircraft Lease Securitisation's aircraft, for which we receive a retainer fee of 0.212% per year of the initial appraised value of the aircraft, which was $2.1 billion, a monthly fee equal to 1.0% of the aggregate rent actually paid each month, and a sales-based incentive fee of 1.25% of the specified target sales prices for the sale or insured loss of an aircraft. The target sales price for an aircraft is 90% of the appraised value of the aircraft, which is adjusted annually. We also provide insurance services for which we receive an annual fee of $50,000 and administrative services for which we receive a monthly fee of $1,380 for each aircraft, subject to annual adjustments for inflation and a minimum of $0.2 million per year.
We may be terminated as manager and administrative agent by Aircraft Lease Securitisation or MBIA Insurance Corporation if we default on our obligations as manager or administrative agent or become insolvent. In addition, we may be terminated as manager if:
We, as manager, may not be removed or resign prior to the expiration of the servicing agreement unless a replacement manager has been appointed.
Payment Terms. The interest and principal payments on the notes are due on a monthly basis. To the extent that the amount of funds available for payment on any payment date exceeds the amount needed to pay all payments having an equal or higher priority under the trust indenture, any such excess funds will be applied to reduce the outstanding principal balance of the new notes by
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distributing such excess amount in accordance with the priority of payments set forth in the trust indenture.
Aircraft Lease Securitisation may voluntarily redeem the new notes at a price that equals the outstanding principal balance of the applicable notes multiplied by a scheduled percentage. On the closing date of the securitization, the scheduled percentage for the new notes was 101% for the class G-3 notes, and such percentage decreases gradually until May 15, 2010. On that date, the redemption price of the notes will equal the outstanding principal balance of the notes. In addition, Aircraft Lease Securitisation must pay any accrued but unpaid interest on the notes and any premium due to MBIA Insurance Corporation upon redemption of the notes. Aircraft Lease Securitisation may redeem the notes in whole or in part, provided that if a default notice has been given under the trust indenture or the maturity of any notes has been accelerated then Aircraft Lease Securitisation may only redeem the notes in whole.
Maturity Date. The final maturity date of the notes will be May 10, 2032.
Collateral. The property of Aircraft Lease Securitisation includes the rights under the financial guaranty insurance policy. The notes are secured by security interests in and pledges or assignments of equity ownership and beneficial interests in the subsidiaries of Aircraft Lease Securitisation, as well as by the interests of Aircraft Lease Securitisation's subsidiaries' interests in leases of the aircraft they own, by cash held by or for them and by their rights under agreements with the service providers. Rentals and reserves paid under leases of the Aircraft Lease Securitisation aircraft will be placed in a collection account and paid out according to a priority of payments.
UBS Revolving Credit Facility
General. On April 26, 2006, our consolidated subsidiary, AerFunding 1 Limited entered into a non recourse senior secured revolving credit facility in the aggregate amount of up to $1.0 billion with UBS Real Estate Securities LLC., UBS Securities Inc., Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas and certain other financial institutions. The facility was further amended on May 8, 2007. The revolving loans under the UBS revolving credit facility are divided into two classes: class A loans, which have a maximum advance limit of $830.0 million and class B loans, which have a maximum advance limit of $170.0 million. As of May 31, 2007, we had $41.4 million of loans outstanding under the UBS revolving credit facility. Borrowings under the UBS revolving credit facility can be used to finance between 66% and 79% of the appraised value of the acquired aircraft or, in the case of Boeing 737NG and Airbus A320 family aircraft, between 74% and 80% of the lower of the purchase price and the appraised value of the acquired aircraft. In addition, value enhancing expenditures and required liquidity reserves are also funded by the lenders. All borrowings under the UBS revolving credit facility are subject to the satisfaction of customary conditions and restrictions on the purchase of aircraft that would result in our portfolio becoming too highly concentrated, with regard to both aircraft type and geographical location. Notwithstanding these restrictions, we believe that the UBS revolving credit facility provides us with significant flexibility to purchase and finance aircraft.
Interest Rate. Borrowings under the UBS revolving credit facility bear interest (a) in the case of class A loans, based on the eurodollar rate plus the class A applicable margin, or (b) in the case of class B loans, based on the eurodollar rate plus the class B applicable margin. The following table sets
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forth the applicable margin for the two classes of the UBS revolving credit facility during the periods specified:
|
Class A |
Class B |
||
---|---|---|---|---|
Borrowing period(1) | 1.35% | 3.75% | ||
First 180 days following conversion | 2.10% | 4.50% | ||
From 181 days to 360 days following conversion | 2.60% | 5.00% | ||
From 361 days to 450 days following conversion | 2.85% | 5.25% | ||
From 450 days to 541 days following conversion | 3.10% | 5.50% | ||
Thereafter | 3.35% | 5.75% |
Additionally, we are subject to (a) a 0.25% fee on any unused portion of the unused class A loan commitment and (b) a 0.50% fee on any unused portion of the unused class B loan commitment.
Payment Terms. Interest on the loans is due on a monthly basis. Principal on the loans amortizes on a monthly basis to the extent funds are available. All outstanding principal not paid during the term is due on the maturity date.
Prepayment. Advances under the UBS revolving credit facility may be prepaid without penalty upon notice, subject to certain conditions. Mandatory partial prepayments of borrowings under the UBS revolving credit facility are required:
Maturity Date. The maturity date of the UBS revolving credit facility is May 8, 2013.
Cash Reserve. AerFunding is required to maintain up to 6.0% of the borrowing value of the aircraft in reserve for the benefit of the class A and B lenders. Amounts held in reserve for the benefit of the class A and B lenders are available to the extent there are insufficient funds to pay required expenses, hedge payments or principal of or interest on the class A and B loans on any payment date. The amounts on reserve are funded by the lenders.
Collateral. Borrowings under the UBS revolving credit facility are secured by, among other things, security interests in and pledges or assignments of equity ownership and beneficial interests in all of the subsidiaries of AerFunding, as well as by AerFunding's interests in the leases of its assets.
Certain Covenants. The UBS revolving credit facility contains covenants that, among other things, restrict, subject to certain exceptions, the ability of AerFunding and its subsidiaries to:
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AeroTurbine Calyon Loans and Facility
General. On December 13, 2006, AeroTurbine entered into an amended and restated senior credit agreement with Calyon and certain other financial institutions identified therein. Pursuant to this agreement, the total commitment of the revolving loan facility under the original senior credit agreement increased from $171.0 million to $220.0 million, and AeroTurbine repaid in full the senior secured term loan amounts outstanding under that agreement, as well as the junior secured term loan amounts outstanding under the related junior credit agreement. As of March 31, 2007, AeroTurbine had $35.7 million outstanding under the Calyon revolving loan facility.
Interest Rate. Under the Calyon revolving loan facility, AeroTurbine can borrow revolving loans based on either LIBOR or ABR (which is a rate per annum equal to the greater of the prime rate in effect on such day and the federals funds effective rate in effect on such day plus 1/2 of 1%). Interest rates depend on the type of loan borrowed and AeroTurbine's debt-to-earnings ratio at the time of borrowing. Set forth below are the interest rates for the Calyon revolving loan facility.
|
Amount outstanding at March 31, 2007 |
|
Interest rate |
||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
(US dollars in thousands) |
|
ABR Loans |
LIBOR Loans |
|||||
Revolving Loan Facility | $ | 35,688 | When AeroTurbine's Consolidated Leverage Ratio is less than 3.5:1 | ABR + 0.0% | LIBOR + 1.5% | ||||
|
When AeroTurbine's Consolidated Leverage Ratio is equal to or greater than 3.5:1 |
ABR + 0.5% |
LIBOR + 2.0% |
||||||
Total | $ | 35,688 | |||||||
Prepayment. Advances under the Calyon revolving loan facility may be prepaid without prepayment penalty. Mandatory prepayments of the Calyon revolving loan facility are required:
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Payment Terms. Payments of interest under the revolving loan facility are due quarterly (or, if the interest period is less than three months for a LIBOR loan, the last day of the interest period for that loan). Payments of principal on the revolving loan facility are due on the maturity date. All outstanding loans not paid during the term shall be due on the maturity date.
Maturity Date. The maturity date of the Calyon revolving loan facility is April 26, 2011.
Collateral. Borrowings under the Calyon revolving loan facility are secured by security interests in and pledges or assignments of all the shares and other ownership interests in AeroTurbine and its subsidiaries, as well as by all assets of AeroTurbine and its subsidiaries.
Certain Covenants. The Calyon revolving loan facility contains a number of covenants that, among other things, restrict, subject to certain exceptions, the ability of AeroTurbine to:
In addition, the Calyon revolving loan facility requires AeroTurbine to maintain certain minimum debt-to-earnings and earnings-to-expenses ratios.
Japanese Operating Lease Financings
General. We entered into several Japanese operating lease financing structures to finance aircraft acquisitions. Funding under these structures is provided through a combination of senior commercial bank debt and subordinated loans from Japanese investors. At March 31, 2007, we had financed three aircraft under Japanese operating lease financings. The aggregate principal amount of the loans outstanding under Japanese operating leases financings was $98.3 million as of March 31, 2007.
Interest Rate. Set forth below are the interest rates for our senior loans and subordinated debt.
|
Amount outstanding at March 31, 2007 |
Average interest rates |
|||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
(US dollars in thousands) |
|
|||
Senior loan | $ | 68,195 | Three-month LIBOR plus 0.95% | ||
Subordinated debt | 30,133 | Fixed rate 4.03% | |||
Total | $ | 98,328 | |||
Collateral. Our Japanese operating leases financings require legal title to the aircraft be transferred to and held by a special purpose company controlled by the respective lenders. We have entered into lease agreements on the subject aircraft which transfer the risk and rewards of ownership of the aircraft to us. The obligations outstanding under our Japanese operating leases financings are
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secured by a pledge of the shares of the company which holds legal title to the aircraft financed under the facility. Each subsidiary's obligations under the financings are guaranteed by AerCap Holdings N.V.
Certain Covenants. Our Japanese operating leases financings contain affirmative covenants customary for secured financings.
AerVenture Pre-delivery Payment Facility
General. In November 2005, AerVenture signed a letter of intent to purchase 70 Airbus A320 family aircraft. A purchase agreement for the aircraft was signed in January 2006. The aircraft are scheduled to be delivered between November 2007 and August 2010. Under the purchase agreement, AerVenture agreed to make scheduled pre-delivery payments to Airbus prior to the physical delivery of each aircraft. In connection with the scheduled delivery of the first 30 aircraft before the end of 2009, AerVenture and Calyon entered into a facility on November 3, 2006 in which Calyon has arranged a credit facility, the AerVenture facility, to finance a portion of the pre-delivery payments to Airbus in an amount up to $118.9 million. Prior to drawing on the AerVenture facility, AerVenture will pay, on average, 54% of the pre-delivery payment amount owed for each aircraft to be delivered in 2007, 60% of such amounts for each aircraft to be delivered in 2008 and 42% of such amount for each aircraft to be delivered in 2009. AerVenture must repay the lenders for the amounts drawn for the pre-delivery payment for each aircraft at the delivery date of that aircraft or, if the aircraft is not delivered on the scheduled delivery date, within three months of the scheduled delivery date. We agreed with Calyon that we will invest at least an additional $25 million in AerVenture, subject to limited exceptions. The aggregate principal amount of the loans outstanding under the AerVenture pre-delivery payment facility was $19.5 million as of March 31, 2007.
Interest Rate. Borrowings under the AerVenture facility bear interest at a floating interest rate of one-month LIBOR plus a margin of 1.65%, payable monthly in arrears after the initial drawing on the AerVenture facility.
Prepayment. Borrowings under the AerVenture facility may be prepaid without penalty, except for break funding costs if payment is made on a day other than an interest payment date. AerVenture will be required to repay the pre-delivery payment financing relating to an aircraft on the date the aircraft is delivered to AerVenture.
Maturity Date. The maturity date of the AerVenture facility is November 3, 2009, however, in the event of delayed delivery of the aircraft, the maturity date may be extended up to the earlier of (i) the delayed delivery date of the aircraft and (ii) January 31, 2010, for the repayment of the indebtedness financing the pre-delivery payments of the delayed aircraft.
Collateral. Borrowings under the AerVenture facility are secured by, among other things, the partial assignment of the airframe and engine purchase agreements in respect of the 30 aircraft covered by the facility, including the right to take delivery of the aircraft where Calyon has provided the pre delivery payments and the aircraft remains undelivered.
Certain Covenants. The AerVenture facility contains customary affirmative and financial covenants for secured financings. We have agreed to maintain a minimum of 25% of the shares of AerVenture until the AerVenture facility is fully repaid. AerVenture is required to maintain a minimum net worth and a debt to equity ratio below a specified threshold.
Bella Term Loans
General. On each of April 21, 2006 and May 10, 2006, our 50% owned consolidated joint venture, Bella Aircraft Leasing 1 Limited, entered into a loan agreement with DVB Bank AG, London Branch to provide for two term loans of up to $31.2 million and $28.0 million, each to finance the purchase of
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an aircraft. The maturity dates of the loans are February 27, 2009 and May 11, 2011, respectively. Borrowings under the loans are secured by security interests in and pledges of all shares in the borrower, the accounts to which lease payments are made, the aircraft, and certain of the borrower's rights under the lease and the loan documents. As of March 31, 2007, the amount outstanding under each loan was $28.4 million and $25.9 million, respectively.
Interest Rate. Borrowings under the April 21, 2006 loan agreement bear interest at a fixed rate of 7.32%. Borrowings under the May 10, 2006 loan agreement bear interest at a fixed rate of 7.70%.
Certain Covenants. The loans include general and operating covenants that restrict the borrower from incurring additional indebtedness and other limitations which are customary for such credit facilities.
GATX Aircraft Calyon Facility
General. On October 12, 2006, a wholly owned subsidiary entered into a senior secured loan facility in the aggregate amount of up to $248.0 million with Calyon and certain other financial institutions in order to finance the purchase of 25 aircraft from GATX, 24 of which were acquired by us. Borrowings under the senior facility can be used to finance the lesser of 70% of the purchase price of each aircraft and a specified percentage of the loan amount allocated to such aircraft. Concurrently with this facility, we will provide junior and subordinated debt to finance the balance of the purchase price. This subsidiary entered into (a) a junior loan facility with us in an aggregate amount of up to $30.5 million to finance a portion of the purchase price of each aircraft not financed under the senior facility and (b) a subordinated note purchase agreement to finance the portion of the purchase price of each such aircraft not financed under the senior facility or the junior facility. Initially, we or one of our wholly owned subsidiaries are providing the junior loan facility and the subordinated note financing. As of March 31, 2007, the amount outstanding under the senior facility was $210.5 million.
Interest Rate. Borrowings under the senior facility bear interest at a rate of one month LIBOR plus 1.75% per annum for the first five years of the term, and at a rate of one month LIBOR plus 2.25% per annum for the remainder of the term.
Prepayment. After full repayment of amounts outstanding under the liquidity facility described below, prepayment of borrowings under the senior facility is permitted with notice, subject to a prepayment fee during the initial two years of the senior facility. Mandatory prepayments of borrowings related to a particular aircraft are required:
Payment Terms. Payments of principal and interest under the loan are due on a monthly basis, and all outstanding principal not paid during the term is due on the final maturity date.
Maturity Date. The final maturity date of the loans is October 12, 2013.
Put to AerCap. If the junior and senior loans attributable to any financed aircraft are not paid by the earlier of (a) the 21st anniversary of the date of manufacture of such aircraft and (b) the final maturity date of the loans, then the collateral agent for the lenders may cause such aircraft to be sold to our wholly-owned subsidiary, AerCap B.V., for a purchase price equal to the outstanding principal amount of the junior and senior loans attributable to such aircraft together with breakage costs plus a pro rata portion of any amounts outstanding under the liquidity facility and taxes and expenses.
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Liquidity Facility. Calyon has provided a liquidity facility in an amount equal to the greater of (i) $10.0 million and (ii) $27.0 million multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which is the aggregate outstanding principal amount under the senior and junior facilities and the denominator of which is the aggregate amounts committed under the senior and junior facilities. The liquidity facility may be drawn upon to finance any shortfall in certain amounts owed on any repayment date, including, minimum principal payments, payments of interest due under the senior or junior facility and certain expenses.
Aircraft Management Services. We provide aircraft management services in respect of the financed aircraft, for which we receive a fee.
Collateral. Borrowings under the senior facility are secured by mortgages on the aircraft and security interest in and pledges or assignments of all the shares and other ownership interests in the borrower and its subsidiaries, as well as their bank accounts and lease interests.
Certain Covenants. The loans include general and operating covenants that restrict the borrower from incurring additional indebtedness and other limitations which are customary for such credit facilities.
Other Commercial Bank Financings
We have entered into various commercial bank financings to fund the purchase of aircraft. The financings mature at various dates through 2019. The interest rates are LIBOR based with spreads ranging from 0.95% to 1.80%. The financings are secured by, among other things, a pledge of the shares of the subsidiaries owning the related aircraft, a guarantee from us and, in certain cases, a mortgage on the applicable aircraft. The aggregate principal amount of the loans outstanding under the commercial bank financings was $326.3 million as of March 31, 2007.
All of our financings contain affirmative covenants customary for secured financings. Four of the commercial bank financings contain change of control provisions that grant the lenders the right to prepayment of their loans in the event of a change of control, unless the lenders consent to the change of control.
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Directors and Executive Officers
Name |
Age |
Position |
||
---|---|---|---|---|
Directors | ||||
Pieter Korteweg | 65 | Non-Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors | ||
Ronald J. Bolger | 59 | Non-Executive Director | ||
James N. Chapman | 45 | Non-Executive Director | ||
Klaus W. Heinemann | 56 | Executive Director, Chief Executive Officer | ||
W. Brett Ingersoll | 43 | Non-Executive Director | ||
Marius J.L. Jonkhart | 57 | Non-Executive Director | ||
Gerald P. Strong | 62 | Non-Executive Director | ||
David J. Teitelbaum | 35 | Non-Executive Director | ||
Robert G. Warden | 34 | Non-Executive Director | ||
Executive Officers |
||||
Wouter M. (Erwin) den Dikken | 39 | Chief Legal Officer | ||
Patrick P. den Elzen | 41 | Head of Trading | ||
Soeren E. Ferré | 39 | Head of Europe, Middle East, Africa & Asia-Pacific Regions | ||
Nicolas Finazzo | 50 | AeroTurbine Chief Executive Officer | ||
Keith A. Helming | 48 | Chief Financial Officer | ||
Aengus Kelly | 34 | Group Treasurer | ||
Heinrich H. Loechteken | 45 | Chief Investment Officer | ||
Anil Mehta | 57 | Executive Vice President of Americas | ||
Robert B. Nichols | 51 | AeroTurbine Chief Operating Officer | ||
Cole T. Reese | 42 | Chief Tax & Accounting Officer | ||
Reynoud K. Simonis | 44 | Chief Technical Officer |
Directors
Pieter Korteweg. Mr. Korteweg has been a director of our company since September 20, 2005. He serves in various positions in numerous organizations including as Chairman of the Supervisory Board of a number of Cerberus companies in the Netherlands, including Aozora Bank Ltd., consultant to and Vice Chairman of Cerberus Global Investment Advisors, LLC and member of the Supervisory Boards of DaimlerChrysler Netherlands B.V. and Hypo Real Estate Holding AG. He also serves as senior advisor to Anthos B.V. Mr. Korteweg previously served as Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Pensions and Insurance Supervisory Authority of The Netherlands, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Dutch Central Bureau of Statistics and Vice-Chairman of the Supervisory Board of De Nederlandsche Bank from 2002 to 2004. From 1987 to 2001, Mr. Korteweg was President and Chief Executive Officer of the Group Executive Committee of Robeco Group in Rotterdam. From 1981 to 1986, he was Treasurer General at The Netherlands Ministry of Finance. In addition, Mr. Korteweg was a professor of economics from 1971 to 1998 at Erasmus University Rotterdam in The Netherlands. Mr. Korteweg holds a PhD in Economics from Erasmus University Rotterdam.
Ronald J. Bolger. Mr. Bolger has been a director of our company since October 11, 2005. Mr. Bolger currently serves as a member of the board of directors of a number of companies including Ely Capital Ltd., Irish Food Processors, C & D Foods Ltd., Galway Clinic Doughiska Ltd. and Global Shares Plc. He is a former Managing Partner of KPMG Ireland and has wide experience in the financial services industry. He served on the Irish Prime Minister's Committee for Dublin's
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International Financial Services Centre from 1987 to 2002. Mr. Bolger was appointed Honorary Consul General of Singapore in Ireland in 2000. Mr. Bolger is a Chartered Accountant and holds a BA in Economics from University College Dublin.
James N. Chapman. Mr. Chapman has been a director of our company since December 7, 2005. Mr. Chapman is non-executive Vice Chairman and Director of JetWorks Leasing, LLC, an aircraft management services company based in Greenwich, Connecticut, which he joined in December 2004. Prior to JetWorks, Mr. Chapman joined Regiment Capital Advisors, LLC in January 2003, a high-yield hedge fund based in Boston. Prior to Regiment, Mr. Chapman was a capital markets and strategic planning consultant and worked with private and public companies as well as hedge funds (including Regiment) across a range of industries. Mr. Chapman also serves as a director of Coinmach Service Corp. (AMEX: DRY/DRA) and Scottish Re Group, Ltd. (NYSE: SCT). Mr. Chapman also serves as a member of the board of directors of a number of private companies. Mr. Chapman received an MBA with distinction from Dartmouth College and was elected as an Edward Tuck Scholar. He received his BA, with distinction, magna cum laude, from Dartmouth College and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, in addition to being a Rufus Choate Scholar.
Klaus W. Heinemann. Mr. Heinemann has been the Chief Executive Officer of our company since April 2003 and has over 25 years of experience in the aviation financing industry. Mr. Heinemann has been a director of our company since 2002. Mr. Heinemann joined our company in October 2002 from DVB Bank, where he was a Member of the Executive Board. In 1988 he joined the Long-Term Credit Bank of Japan in London as Deputy General Manager and Head of the Aviation Group. He was later appointed as Joint General Manager of the Head Office at the Long Term Credit Bank of Japan, where he was responsible for the Transportation Finance division before this division was sold to DVB Bank in 1998. Mr. Heinemann started his career with Bank of America in 1976, where he helped to build up its Aviation Finance department in Europe. Mr. Heinemann holds the degree of Diplom Kaufmann (Bachelor of Commerce) from the University of Hamburg.
W. Brett Ingersoll. Mr. Ingersoll has been a director of our company since September 20, 2005. He is currently a Managing Director of Cerberus Capital Management, L.P., a senior member of its Private Equity Practice and a member of its Investment Committee. Mr. Ingersoll is also a director of ACE Aviation Holdings Inc. and a member of the Audit, Finance and Risk Committee and the Human Resources and Compensation Committee of ACE Aviation Holdings Inc. In addition, Mr. Ingersoll is a director of various public and private companies, including Coram Health Care, IAP Worldwide Services, Inc., Entrecap, Talecris Bio Therapeutics, Inc. and Endura Care, LLC. Prior to joining Cerberus in 2002, Mr. Ingersoll was a Partner at JP Morgan Partners (formerly Chase Capital Partners) from 1993 to 2002. Mr. Ingersoll received his MBA from Harvard Business School and his BA from Brigham Young University.
Marius J.L. Jonkhart. Mr. Jonkhart has been a director of our company since October 11, 2005. Mr. Jonkhart is currently the Chief Executive Officer of NOB Holding N.V. He is currently also a member of the Supervisory Boards of Connexxion Holding N.V., Corus Nederland B.V., Orco Banking Group and Staatsbosbeheer, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Ruimte voor Ruimte Beheer B.V. and a non-executive director of Aozora Bank. Mr. Jonkhart is an advisor to Cerberus Global Investment Advisors, LLC. Mr. Jonkhart was previously the Chief Executive Officer of De Nationale Investerings Bank N.V. and also served as the director of monetary affairs of the Dutch Ministry of finance. He was also a professor of finance at Erasmus University Rotterdam. He has served as a member of a number of supervisory boards, including the Supervisory Boards of the European Investment Bank, Bank Nederlandse Gemeenten N.V., Postbank N.V., NPM Capital N.V., Kema N.V., AM Holding N.V. and De Nederlandsche Bank N.V. He has also served as chairman of the Investment Board of ABP Pension Fund and several other funds. Mr. Jonkhart holds a Master's degree in Business
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Administration, a Master's degree in Business Economics and a PhD in Economics from Erasmus University Rotterdam.
Gerald P. Strong. Mr. Strong has been a director of our company since July 26, 2006. He currently is a Managing Director of Cerberus European Capital Advisors LLP. Mr. Strong has extensive senior experience in a number of industries, including airlines, global communications, retailing, and consumer products. He has served senior roles in the restructuring and building of a number of international businesses in his career. Mr. Strong was Chairman of the Advisory Board on Telecom Security to the government of the United Kingdom from 2002 to 2005 and President and Chief Executive Officer of Teleglobe International Holdings Limited. He is also a member of the Governing Council of the Ashridge Business School, a Director of NewPage Corporation and Chairman of Virtual IT. Mr. Strong received his BA with honors from Trinity College, Dublin.
David J. Teitelbaum. Mr. Teitelbaum has been a director of our company since September 20, 2005. Mr. Teitelbaum is a Managing Director of Cerberus European Capital Advisors LLP and has worked for Cerberus and/or its affiliates since 1997. Prior to joining Cerberus, Mr. Teitelbaum worked in the investment banking department of Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette. Mr. Teitelbaum holds a BS in Business Administration from the University of California, Berkeley.
Robert G. Warden. Mr. Warden has been a director of our company since September 20, 2005. He is also currently a Managing Director of Cerberus Capital Management, L.P., which he joined in February 2003. Mr. Warden is also currently a director of Bluelinx Corporation. Prior to joining Cerberus, Mr. Warden was a Vice President at J.H. Whitney from May 2000 to February 2003, a Principal at Cornerstone Equity Investors LLC from July 1998 to May 2000 and an Associate at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette from July 1995 to July 1998. Mr. Warden received his AB from Brown University.
Executive Officers
Wouter M. (Erwin) den Dikken. Mr. den Dikken was appointed as our Chief Legal Officer in 2005 and has served as the Head of the Group Legal Services department since 2004. He joined our legal department in 1998. Prior to joining us, Mr. den Dikken worked for an international packaging company in Germany as Senior Legal Counsel where he focused on mergers and acquisitions. Mr. den Dikken holds a law degree from Utrecht University.
Patrick P. den Elzen. Mr. den Elzen was appointed as the Head of Trading in 2005 and he served as the Vice President of Financial Engineering of our company prior to this appointment. Prior to joining us in October 2003, Mr. den Elzen worked as the Senior Vice President of Corporate Development with IEM Airfinance for two years, and before that, he worked in various capacities with ING Bank and ING Lease for eight years. Mr. den Elzen holds a Master's degree from the University of Amsterdam in Business Administration and International Financial Markets.
Soeren E. Ferré. Mr. Ferré has been the Head of Europe, Middle East, Africa & Asia-Pacific Region of our company since June 2006. He joined our company in September 2003 as Vice President of Marketing for the Asia-Pacific region. In July 2004, he was appointed as the Head of Sales and Marketing for the Asia-Pacific region. He started his career at Airbus in 1990 and was based in Toulouse, France. In 1995, he moved to China and became the head of the marketing team covering China, Hong Kong and Macau for Airbus prior to becoming a Sales Director in 1999 in charge of the major Chinese airlines. In 2001, Mr. Ferré moved to Sydney to become the Director of Sales for the Pacific region for Airbus where he was in charge of the major airlines in that region. Mr. Ferré holds a Bachelor's degree in Engineering from the ENACEcole National de l'Aviation Civile.
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Nicolas Finazzo. Mr. Finazzo is the Chief Executive Officer of AeroTurbine, which he co founded in 1997. He has been active in the aviation industry for over 25 years. In 1982 he founded Air Florida commuter carrier Southern Express Airways. In 1987 Mr. Finazzo joined Miami based Greenwich Air Services as Vice PresidentContracts. In 1992 he became Vice President & General Counsel to Miami based International Air Leases, and in 1997, he accepted a similar position at Miami based AeroThrust Corp. Mr. Finazzo earned a JD from the University of Miami School of Law and a BS in Political Science from the University of Michigan. He is a member of the Florida Bar and also holds an Airframe & Powerplant license issued by the Federal Aviation Administration.
Keith A. Helming. Mr. Helming assumed the position of Chief Financial Officer of AerCap effective August 21, 2006. Prior to joining us, he was a long standing executive at GE Capital Corporation, including serving recently for five years as Chief Financial Officer at aircraft lessor GE Commercial Aviation Services (GECAS). He was with General Electric Company for over 25 years, beginning with their Financial Management Program in 1981. In addition to the GECAS role, Mr. Helming served as the Chief Financial Officer of GE Corporate Financial Services, GE Fleet Services and GE Consumer Finance in the United Kingdom, and also held a variety of other financial positions throughout his career at GECC. Mr. Helming holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from Indiana University.
Aengus Kelly. Mr. Kelly has been the Group Treasurer of our company since 2005. He started his career in the aviation leasing and financ