Dubai: US-manufacturer Boeing's financial arm is increasing its efforts connect Middle East airline clients and financial institutions in order to prevent aircraft referrals and attract sales.
Boeing Capital said to global players in the financial industry that aircraft requirements by Arab airlines will provide attractive investment opportunities as the region's aviation industry bucks global downturn and continues to thrive.
"There are great opportunities available for people with capital who are willing to invest," Matthews said.
"Financiers willing to take advantage of the short-term market dislocations with a view toward creating a long-term aircraft portfolio should find themselves generously rewarded, as aircraft remain a great asset," said John Matthews, managing director for the Middle East and Africa at Boeing Capital Corp., the aircraft manufacturer's customer financing unit.
Matthew said that it had already secured financing needs for all of its regional clients. The manufacturer clients include most of the airlines in the region, as well as the major players of the UAE, Emirates Airlines and Etihad Airways.
With heavy aircraft order books and deliveries scheduled every year for the next decade, there will be a series of financing requirements by airlines, translating to attractive opportunities for global financial institutions.
Etihad Airways, UAE's national carriers, signed a $1 billion financing deal on Tuesday, which will finance the acquisition of eight aircraft to be delivered by the end of 2010.
This is the first of many to come as the airline takes delivery of 45 aircraft from Boeing and 55 aircraft from Airbus over the next 10 years.
