Amedeo expects to establish itself as the primary leasing specialist for Airbus A380s and will look to expand its portfolio through the acquisition of second-hand aircraft as their initial lease terms expire.
The London-based lessor has 20 A380s on order for delivery from late 2016 and is also involved in 12 aircraft in the Emirates fleet that were financed through the UK market between 2010 and 2013. “We’re either asset manager or have oversight of those 12 aircraft,” says Amedeo chief executive Mark Lapidus.
As Amedeo looks to place the new-build aircraft it has on order, it is also evaluating ways to remarket second-hand A380s. But Lapidus says that this does not just apply to the Emirates aircraft: “We have in mind all of the A380s that may be coming back [off lease] from any operator, whether they are managed by us currently or not, because we see ourselves as a market maker with vast opportunities to deal with returning aircraft in terms of knowing where they can be deployed, having Airbus agreements that allow us to reconfigure aircraft inexpensively.”
Lapidus believes that Amedeo’s experience would put it “in the right position to deal with any returning aircraft”. He adds: “It’s difficult for us to see anybody else stepping up in the way that we are able to, and will be able to, in terms of having balance sheet, know-how, relationships and agreements in place.”
Amedeo could acquire A380s as their initial lease terms end. The first batch of aircraft to become available will be the early deliveries to Singapore Airlines. These Rolls-Royce Trent 900-powered aircraft are due to return in 2018, and Lapidus says Amedeo would “certainly be looking at being involved with those”.
There are currently 128 A380s in service with 10 operators. The largest fleet is operated by Emirates, which has 47 of the aircraft in service.
Source: Cirium Dashboard
