GECAS acquires helicopter lessor

GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS) has paid $1.775 billion to acquire Milestone Aviation Group, the Dublin-based helicopter lessor, plus the assumption or payoff of Milestone’s existing debt, in a bid to gain a bigger share of the helicopter finance market.

“The acquisition of Milestone is a key part of our growth strategy for 2015 and beyond as we add an experienced team and expand into a natural adjacency for us, helicopters,” said Norman Liu, GECAS president and chief executive officer.

The acquisition also is in line with GE Capital’s strategic plan of growing and enhancing value in core areas aligned with GE’s industrial domains including energy, aviation, oil and gas and healthcare, while reducing the overall size of GE Capital through the disposition of non-strategic assets.

Helicopter finance represents a fast-growing sector in aviation. Milestone was founded in August 2010 by aviation and leasing industry veteran Richard T. Santulli and other members of the former NetJets executive management team. Today, its fleet includes 178 helicopters worth $3 billion as well as a forward order and option book of 121 firm and option aircraft with an estimated aggregate purchase price of $2.7 billion with a variety of helicopter manufacturers. The helicopters in Milestone’s fleet are used in a variety of industries, and are currently leased to 32 operators in 26 countries.

Santulli will serve as chairman of the helicopter leasing business and will become an officer of GE. Milestone president Daniel Rosenthal will serve as president of the business, which will continue to operate as “Milestone Aviation Group.” Fellow Milestone founding executives John Burns, Robert Thor Dranitzke, Matthew Harris and Walter Horsting will continue in their current roles, as will the rest of the Milestone team.

Milestone had been owned by a consortium led by The Jordan Company.