Ryanair announce finance deal worth $1.6bn

Ryanair announced Friday last, July 31 that it had arranged finance in a deal worth $1.6bn for 55 aircraft which are due to be delivered between November 2009 and October 2010, or one frame per week on average. The three bank syndicate consists of BNP Paribas and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, each of whom has underwritten 15 aircraft and Caylon which has underwritten 25 aircraft. Commenting on the deal, Ryanair's CFO Howard Millar said that it was a testimony to the financial strength of the airline and the reputation of the banking partners that a deal of this size could be put together in the current economic climate.