NBAA Conference To Highlight State of Bizjet Financing

The further thawing of aircraft financing post-Great Recession will be one of the main topics at the National Business Aviation Association's 2017 Business Aircraft Finance, Registration, and Legal Conference in Bonita Springs, Florida. Aircraft financiers and attorneys who handle aircraft transactions see certain types of credit becoming more available, even as a “new normal” sets in for aircraft values, the association said.

“Financing sources have been hit by the fall in aircraft values,” said Citi Private Bank director and head of global aircraft finance Ford von Weise, who will moderate the New Opportunities in Aircraft Financing session at the conference, which runs March 5 to 7. “We used to assume the aircraft’s value fell by around 6 percent per year. Now, we have to assume it’ll fall by 10 percent per year. That has put upward pressure on lease monthly payments.”

This has made banks less inclined to offer aircraft leasing or financing for older aircraft. However, several new non-bank lenders, backed by investors and capital markets, have stepped into that gap, the NBAA said. Non-bank lenders are more likely to offer different types of credit, with more flexible structures.

Other sessions at the conference will delve into aircraft taxes, ownership and operating structures, UAVs, the international registry, and best practices for importing and exporting business aircraft.