Dublin, Ireland-based Griffin Global Asset Management on Thursday said it will be purchasing and leasing back five Boeing 737-8 aircraft with Rakesh Jhunjhunwala-backed Akasa Air.
The aircraft deliveries are scheduled to begin in June 2022 and will include Akasa Air’s first several aircraft, the company said in a release.
“We are pleased to have Griffin as our partners in growth as we embark on our aviation journey. The high degree of confidence and endorsement from the Griffin team is a testimony to Akasa Air’s robust and sustainable future,” Vinay Dube – Founder, Managing Director and CEO at Akasa Air said.
“We were introduced to Akasa Air’s management team over a year ago and have watched with excitement as they skillfully built the airline from the ground up. We are honored to enter into this long-term relationship right from Akasa’s launch. They have developed a business strategy that addresses a need in the market and assembled a very impressive team to execute that plan,” said Ryan McKenna, Griffin’s Chief Executive Officer.
Griffin is a commercial aircraft leasing and alternative asset management business.
On May 23, Akasa Air had said that it is on track to receive its first Boeing 737 Max plane by mid-June and launch commercial operations by July.
It plans to fly 18 aircraft by the end of March 2023 across domestic routes in the country, focusing on metro to tier-2 and tier-3 cities, it noted.
The airline, which is backed by ace investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala and aviation veterans Vinay Dube and Aditya Ghosh, received the no-objection certificate from the Ministry of Civil Aviation in August 2021 to launch commercial flight operations.
