SHANNON, Ireland October 1, 2002 Air Canada today announced a sale/leaseback agreement with Shannon Engine Support (SES) for five CFM56-5 spare engines. Under the terms of the agreement, SES has purchased the engines outright from Air Canada and will lease them back to the airline for 10 years.
SES is a wholly owned subsidiary of CFM International (CFM). CFM is a 50/50 joint company between Snecma Moteurs (Safran Group) of France and the General Electric Company and produces the world's best-selling commercial engine product line, the CFM56 family.
The agreement is part of a larger sale/leaseback transaction that also includes six spare engines being purchased by GE Engine Leasing*. Air Canada announced that the total transaction would generate approximately $67 million U.S. in new funding to complete refinancing transactions. The airline is one of the largest operators of CFM56-5-powered Airbus A320 aircraft, with approximately 75 airplanes in its fleet.
SES specializes in flexible, cost-effective engine leasing solutions tailored to airlines' specific requirements. Spare engine leasing provides tremendous cost savings to airlines, as demonstrated by the Air Canada agreement. SES also offers guaranteed availability of spare engines, short-term engine leases, operating leases, and engine trading.
SES has a portfolio of 140 CFM56 engines, including: CFM56-3 and CFM56-7 engines for Boeing 737 aircraft; CFM56-5A and CFM56-5B engines for the Airbus A320 family; and the CFM56-5C for the Airbus A340. The company supports 40 customers worldwide, predominantly in Europe and China.
* GE Engine Leasing is a joint services unit of GE Engine Services and GE Capital Aviation Services Inc.