Aircastle Announces Second Quarter 2022 Results and Sale of Three Wide-body Aircraft

Three Months Ended August 31, 2022

• Total revenues of $174 million
• Adjusted EBITDA⁽¹⁾ of $159 million
• Net loss of $9 million

Highlights for the Three Months Ended August 31, 2022

• Acquired seven narrow-body aircraft for $286 million
• Sold five aircraft and other flight equipment for proceeds of $113 million and a gain on sale of $10 million
• Interest expense down 9% compared to second quarter of 2021
• Wrote off remaining book value of one 747 Freighter in Russia deemed irrecoverable, resulting in a $28 million impairment.
• Subsequently sold two 747 Freighter and one 777 aircraft in September 2022 for an approximate gain of 53 million

Liquidity

• Expanded the size of one of our unsecured revolving credit facilities to $1.0 billion in September 2022
• Total liquidity as of October 1, 2022 of $2.1 billion including $1.4 billion of undrawn credit facilities, $0.3 billion of unrestricted cash, and $0.4 billion of projected adjusted operating cash flows through October 1, 2023
• 212 unencumbered aircraft with a net book value of $5.4 billion

STAMFORD, Conn., Oct. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Mike Inglese, Aircastle's Chief Executive Officer, commented, "Although still not at 2019 levels, demand and capacity for air travel continues to strengthen. This trend looks to continue even though concerns over inflation and fuel prices are disrupting some markets. This quarter, Aircastle moved forward with seven narrow-body acquisitions, continuing our focus on new technology aircraft."

Mr. Inglese concluded, "With the September sale of three aircraft at significant profit, as well as the recent upsize of one of our revolvers to $1 billion, we are optimistic as we pursue strategic, new-technology investments.  Our favorable credit rating, along with the opportunities afforded by our unique ownership arrangement with the Marubeni Corporation and Mizuho Leasing have us excited for disciplined future growth."

(1)  Refer to the selected financial information accompanying this press release for a reconciliation of GAAP to Non-GAAP numbers.

Aviation Assets

As of August 31, 2022, Aircastle owned 243 aircraft and other flight equipment having a net book value of $6.5 billion.  We also manage nine aircraft with a net book value of $292 million on behalf of our joint venture with Mizuho Leasing.

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Conference Call

In connection with this press release, management will host a conference call on Wednesday, October 12, 2022, at 9:00 A.M. Eastern Time.  All interested parties are welcome to participate on the live call.  The conference call can be accessed by dialing (866) 580-3963 (from within the U.S. and Canada) or (786) 697-3501 (outside the U.S. and Canada) ten minutes prior to the scheduled start and referencing the passcode "Aircastle".

A simultaneous webcast of the conference call will be available to the public on a listen-only basis at www.aircastle.com.  Please allow extra time prior to the call to visit the site and download the necessary software required to listen to the internet broadcast. 

For those who are not available to listen to the live call, a replay will be available until 12:00 P.M. Eastern Time on Saturday, November 12, 2022, by dialing (866) 580-3963 (from within the U.S. and Canada); please reference passcode 1448014 followed by #.

To access the replay outside the U.S. or Canada, please use the following, referencing passcode 1448014 followed by #: (UK: 0800-633-8453); (Ireland: 1 800-625-161); Singapore (800-441-1300); Japan (0053-1780199).  Additional replay dial-in numbers for other locations are available here.

About Aircastle Limited

Aircastle Limited acquires, leases and sells commercial jet aircraft to airlines throughout the world.  As of August 31, 2022, Aircastle owned and managed on behalf of its joint ventures 252 aircraft leased to 74 customers located in 45 countries.

Safe Harbor

All statements in this press release, other than characterizations of historical fact, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  Examples of forward-looking statements include, but are not necessarily limited to, statements relating to our proposed public offering of notes and our ability to acquire, sell, lease or finance aircraft, raise capital, pay dividends, and increase revenues, earnings, EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA and the global aviation industry and aircraft leasing sector. Words such as "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "projects," "believes," "may," "will," "would," "could," "should," "seeks," "estimates" and variations on these words and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements.  These statements are based on our historical performance and that of our subsidiaries and on our current plans, estimates and expectations and are subject to a number of factors that could lead to actual results materially different from those described in the forward-looking statements; Aircastle can give no assurance that its expectations will be attained.  Accordingly, you should not place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements which are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated as of the date of this press release.  These risks or uncertainties include, but are not limited to, those described from time to time in Aircastle's filings with the SEC and previously disclosed under "Risk Factors" in Item 1A of Aircastle's most recent Form 10-K and any subsequent filings with the SEC.  In addition, new risks and uncertainties emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for Aircastle to predict or assess the impact of every factor that may cause its actual results to differ from those contained in any forward-looking statements.  Such forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release.  Aircastle expressly disclaims any obligation to revise or update publicly any forward-looking statement to reflect future events or circumstances.

Contact:
Aircastle Advisor LLC
Jim Connelly, SVP ESG & Corporate Communications
Tel: +1-203-504-1871
[email protected]

We define EBITDA as income (loss) from continuing operations before income taxes, interest expense, and depreciation and amortization.  We use EBITDA to assess our consolidated financial and operating performance, and we believe this non-U.S. GAAP measure is helpful in identifying trends in our performance.

This measure provides an assessment of controllable expenses and affords management the ability to make decisions which are expected to facilitate meeting current financial goals, as well as achieving optimal financial performance.  It provides an indicator for management to determine if adjustments to current spending decisions are needed.

EBITDA provides us with a measure of operating performance because it assists us in comparing our operating performance on a consistent basis as it removes the impact of our capital structure (primarily interest charges on our outstanding debt) and asset base (primarily depreciation and amortization) from our operating results.  Accordingly, this metric measures our financial performance based on operational factors that management can impact in the short-term, namely the cost structure, or expenses, of the organization.  EBITDA is one of the metrics used by senior management and the Board of Directors to review the consolidated financial performance of our business.

We define Adjusted EBITDA as EBITDA (as defined above) further adjusted to give effect to adjustments required in calculating covenant ratios and compliance as that term is defined in the indenture governing our senior unsecured notes.  Adjusted EBITDA is a material component of these covenants.

SOURCE Aircastle Limited