International law firm Bird & Bird's aviation finance team in France won 'Sustainability Supported Finance Deal of the Year' at Airline Economics Sustainability Awards 2024. The ceremony took place at The Guildhall in London.
The team were recognised for their support of Air France in the refinancing of an Airbus A350-900 through a Japanese Operating Lease with Call Option (JOLCO) financing, with a sustainability linked loan and a first-of-its-kind Balthazar Insurance product. Crédit Agricole Corporate & Investment Bank and the Korea Development Bank were lenders and Mitsubishi HC Capital UK PLC was the equity investor.
This new award, following Ishka’s Best Supported Financing Deal of the Year and Airfinance Journal's Global Lease Deal of the Year in 2023, and Airline Economics' Environmental/ESG leadership Deal of the Year in 2022 for complex and innovative financings, confirms the team's leading expertise in sustainable financing and credit insurance in the aviation sector.
The team was led by partner Laurence Hanley and comprising associates Diane de Bustamante, Maria Miller, Boubeker Moussaoui and paralegal Gaëlle Sow.
