Air India to sale & lease back 7 Dreamliners to raise USD 840 million

Mumbai:  National carrier Air India plans to raise up to USD 840 million by way of sale of its seven Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner planes, which it will then lease back, to pay off the bridge loans taken against these aircraft.

A part of the proceeds will also be used for operational requirements, sources said here. The carrier has already taken the delivery of 11 Dreamliners and three more are expected to join the fleet by March of next year.

"We have put seven Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner planes for sale and leaseback to mop up funds," AI sources told PTI here. "We expect to raise funds to the tune of USD 770-840 million as the airline is likely to get around USD 110-120 million per plane," they said.

The funds raised will be used to pay off the bridge loans taken against these planes, they said, adding that, "the remaining (proceeds) will be used for operational requirements of the company".

Sale-leaseback is an arrangement in which an owner sells an asset to a leasing firm and, at the same time, leases it back (as a lessee) on a long-term basis to retain exclusive possession and use.

The carrier had placed orders for 68 aircraft with Boeing in January, 2006, including for 27 Dreamliners, 41 B-777s and B-737-800s. Apart from this, the national carrier had also booked 43 planes from Airbus, which have already been inducted into its fleet.