Aircraft & Asset Financing
With a team of lawyers specializing in cross-border aviation transactions, King & Wood occupies a leading position in the aircraft finance as well as the airborne equipment leasing and financing sectors in China. We are one of the handful of law firms to have participated directly in the leasing of large aircraft and transactions involving other key airborne equipment by Chinese airlines.
Our experience in this field can be traced back to the late 1980s, when China had just begun acquiring large aircrafts through financial leasing. We have participated in various types of aviation-related financings and have been closely involved in every step of aircraft financing transactions. Our work scope has included designing project structures, drafting relevant contracts, attending negotiations, providing legal analyses, preparing project documents, issuing legal opinions and completing aircraft ownership and mortgage registrations.
King & Wood lawyers have participated in many types of aviation-related financings including operating leasing, financial leasing, sale and lease-backs, leveraged leasing, Japanese leveraged leasing, US ETI structure, aircraft procurement advance payment financing and other aircraft financing businesses. These projects relate to large commercial aircrafts, smaller commercial aircrafts, business jets and other airborne equipments. Our clients include the Export-Import Bank of the United States, GE Capital Aviation Services, Raytheon Aircraft, Boeing, CIT, Bank of America, Citibank, RBS, Export-Import Bank of China, Bank of China and other domestic or international banks and aircraft leasing companies.
Our recent experience includes:
- Representing ICBC Leasing in its sale and lease-back of three A340-300 to China Eastern Airlines and four B737-800 to Shenzhen Airlines.
- Representing China Exim Bank in an aircraft loan to several domestic airlines.
- Representing China Development Bank in its aircraft loan financing to several domestic airlines.
- Representing SG and BNP Paribas in tax financing transactions in connection with leasing four B737-800 and four A321 to Air China.
- Representing Citibank in a credit facility in connection with business jets leasing to Asia United Business Aviation Limited (AUBA).
- Advising GECAS and Aircastle on PRC law issues in connection with securitization of their offshore aircraft assets.
In addition, King & Wood also provides legal services on ship financing as well as other equipment financial leasing. We have acted for well-known banks and financiers, such as ABN AMRO, Royal Bank of Scotland, Bank of China, in their shipping financing or equipment financing.