Singapore Airlines (SIA) has raised about S$2 billion (about $1.5 billion) from sale-and-leaseback (SLB) transactions for 11 wide-body aircraft, comprising seven Airbus A350-900s and four Boeing 787-10s, which will help shore up its liquidity at a time when airlines are facing financial challenges arising from a decline in passenger traffic owing to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
An SLB is a transaction in which the owner sells the aircraft, and then takes it back on lease from the buyer. Such a deal typically removes the aircraft, and its associated debt, from the carrier’s balance sheet.
