Lessor pays to fly its aircraft back to US

The lessor of four Airbus A330-243 aircraft to SAA has paid the fuel for the teetering airline to fly the planes back to the US in a move that could well have been for legal considerations. According to Rapport, SAA’s business rescue practitioners confirmed that the company, Aircastle, paid the fuel bill for the move and that the parties have not yet agreed on penalties and fees for the early termination of the leases. The aircraft are being stored in the desert at Tucson, Arizona. Transport economist Dr Joachim Vermooten said the lessor probably tried to regain its assets at any cost, as it was notoriously difficult for creditors to recoup assets from another country. Leased aircraft are registered in the country where the lessor operates. The 2001 Cape Town Convention on International Interests in Mobile Equipment addresses these issues, Vermooten says. SA signed the treaty, but has yet to incorporate it in domestic legislation.

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