Aviation
We provide aviation clients with strategic guidance on accessing liquidity, financing and purchasing assets, and resolving restructuring and insolvency issues.
Aviation overview
White & Case advises on some of the largest and most complex aviation transactions, financings and disputes in the world. Building on our deep industry experience, we offer comprehensive guidance to airlines, lessors, investors, lenders, sponsors, manufacturers and governmental entities. With a global reach and decades at the market’s forefront, we pioneer the structures that become aviation’s standards.
Our offering
Aircraft transactions
- We structure and execute a wide range of aircraft financings, from operating and finance leases, sale-leasebacks and warehouse facilities to pre-delivery payment (PDP), export credit agency (ECA)-supported, and aircraft non-payment insurance (ANPI/AFIC) and ACG-guaranteed structures, including the first-ever ANPI financing.
- We represent issuers and underwriters on debt and equity capital markets transactions, including EETCs, asset-backed securitizations (ABS), bonds and IPOs.
- We advise airlines, lessors, investors and sponsors on M&A, joint ventures, private equity investments and new leasing platforms, and on portfolio acquisitions and sales of aircraft and engines.
- We negotiate aircraft and engine purchase agreements, and long-term maintenance arrangements with manufacturers.
- We advise on financings for emerging aviation assets, including advanced air mobility (eVTOL) aircraft.
Restructuring and insolvency
- Our Restructuring and Insolvency team represents airlines, lessors, lenders and manufacturers in the largest and most complex aviation bankruptcies and restructurings worldwide.
- We advise on debtor-in-possession (DIP) financings, fleet restructurings and the reprofiling of lessor and lender obligations, including debt-for-equity conversions.
- We coordinate aircraft arrest, repossession and enforcement across the US, Europe and beyond.
Disputes, competition & sanctions
- We act for airlines, lessors and lenders in aviation commercial disputes, lease-return and repossession litigation, and arbitration before courts and tribunals worldwide.
- We advise on merger control, cartel and competition investigations before the European Commission and General Court.
- Our sanctions and export-control advisers, based across the US, EU, UK and Asia-Pacific, prepare license, delisting and unblocking applications, and engage regulators worldwide.
Complex and consequential matters
Aircraft transactions
- We advised ING Capital, Apple Bank, Société Générale and SMBC on ANPI-backed financings for 11 new Boeing aircraft delivered to Korean Air Lines, Ethiopian Airlines and Intrepid Aviation, with non-payment cover issued by the Aircraft Finance Insurance Consortium (AFIC). The Korean Air Lines financing was named Airfinance Journal Overall Deal of the Year.
- We advised BNDES, Brazil's development bank, on its first-ever joint financing with AFIC, a pathfinder transaction: the first time a development bank used ANPI cover, the first time a US airline (SkyWest) borrowed under an ANPI-covered financing, and the first ANPI financing of Yaborã (Embraer) aircraft. Airline Economics Supported Finance Deal of the Year.
- We advised Archer Aviation on United Airlines’ US$1 billion purchase of its electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, with an option for up to US$500 million more, and on Archer’s US$3.8 billion public listing via a merger with Atlas Crest Investment Corp. We also advised on Archer’s collaboration with United, under which United contributes airspace-management expertise to help develop the aircraft.
Restructuring and insolvency
- We advised Azul Airlines on the restructuring of its aircraft lease obligations across its fleet, together with its obligations to original equipment manufacturers and existing bondholders. Airline Economics Restructuring Deal of the Year; Bonds & Loans Latin America & Caribbean Liability Management Deal of the Year.
- We advised Oaktree Capital Management on its commitment of up to US$1.125 billion as Tranche A DIP lender in LATAM Airlines’ US$2.45 billion chapter 11 debtor-in-possession financing, secured by LATAM’s equity interests, frequent-flyer program, slots and routes, engines and spare parts. IFLR Restructuring Deal of the Year.
- We advised Air France-KLM as part of the consortium selected as the winning bidder for SAS in its chapter 11 proceedings.
Disputes, competition & sanctions
- We advised Aegean Airlines before the European Commission, which cleared the Greek carrier's €75 million acquisition of rival Olympic Air. It was the airlines’ second attempt to merge, after the Commission prohibited the first, and cleared this time following an in-depth Phase II review that concluded Olympic Air would otherwise cease operating.
- We represented Air Austral in a French Competition Authority investigation into the airline industry, launched in 2018 and including investigation proceedings at the airline’s premises. Following our representations, the general rapporteur closed the investigation in July 2020, an extremely rare outcome at that stage.
