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Lars Wagner (left), Airbus Commercial Aircraft CEO, shakes hands with Peter Barrett, CEO of SMBC Aviation Capital, on July 20 at the Farnborough Airshow.
Credit: Henry Wagner/Aviation-Images
FARNBOROUGH, England—SMBC Aviation Capital is extending its Airbus orderbook into the 2030s with a commitment for 100 A320neo-family aircraft.
The deal, announced on the first day of the Farnborough Airshow, follows an earlier agreement to purchase 100 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft.
SMBC has secured a bigger orderbook through its recent acquisition of Air Lease Corporation (ALC), but most deliveries only extended to around 2030. Getting access to production slots beyond 2030 was a key priority. According to Airbus Head of Sales Benoit de Saint-Exupéry, the transaction was more than a year in the making.
Prior to the latest Boeing and Airbus deals, SMBC had a combined Boeing and Airbus backlog of around 420 aircraft.
The order is split between the A321neo (65 aircraft) and the A320neo (35), reflecting current market trends favoring larger narrowbodies. “There is a clear role for the A320neo,” SMBC’s CEO Peter Barrett said. “These things tend to come in cycles.”
Commenting on the overall order, SMBC sees “a consistent need for these aircraft beyond the end of this decade,” Barrett said. The company has not made an engine choice for this particular order—however, it announced a deal with CFM International to power 35 A320neos from an earlier commitment.
Barrett also voiced caution about the prospects for next-generation single-aisle aircraft. “Current-generation aircraft continue to provide great savings,” Barrett said. “We will want a step change [in performance] from next-generation aircraft. And that will be challenging and will take time.”
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