Castlelake, L.P., a global alternative investment firm and experienced leader in aircraft investing, leasing and servicing, announced the creation of Castlelake Aviation Limited (CA), a corporate lessor of commercial aircraft that will finance a portfolio of modern, young, fuel-efficient aircraft.

“We are thrilled to create Castlelake Aviation Limited, which is an exciting and natural next step in the evolution of our industry leading aviation finance business,” said Evan Carruthers, Managing Partner and co-founder of Castlelake. “This is a powerful demonstration of our commitment to staying at the forefront of the aviation financing industry and ensuring we are well-positioned to nimbly provide bespoke financing solutions to our partners."

The formation of Castlelake Aviation Limited builds on Castlelake’s history of innovation in aviation finance and follows its establishment of an aviation lending business in late 2020 and its reopening of the aircraft ABS market with Castlelake Aircraft Structured Trust 2021-1 in January 2021, the first such transaction to be completed since the beginning of the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Since its inception, Castlelake has invested more than $14 billion in aviation-related opportunities. With a team of over 60 aviation professionals who have experience with nearly all commercial aircraft types, the firm currently directly manages and services a global fleet of more than 350 aircraft operated by a diverse range of customers, including the world’s leading airlines across more than 50 countries around the globe.

CA will directly benefit from this differentiated expertise and senior Castlelake aviation leaders, including Joe McConnell and Otto Verhoeff, who will serve on CA’s Board and be directly involved in the development, execution and oversight of its growth strategy.

Upon its formation, CA’s initial portfolio will be composed primarily of next generation, narrowbody aircraft on long-term leases to leading international airlines and CA will maintain a similarly high-quality, fuel-efficient fleet by utilizing Castlelake’s robust trading and re-marketing capabilities. Additionally, CA’s growth trajectory will be supported by Castlelake’s extensive near-term pipeline of investing opportunities, including active negotiations for over 40 aircraft representing over $2 billion in potential investments, primarily in newer technology assets.

CA’s portfolio will be financed by a mix of secured and unsecured debt instruments in addition to equity capital provided by funds managed by Castlelake.

Ratings Information

Castlelake Aviation Limited received the following credit ratings from leading rating agencies:

• S&P: BB-
• Moody’s Investor Services: Ba3
• Fitch Ratings: BB
• Kroll Bond

Milbank LLP acted as U.S. counsel to Castlelake.