Milbank Advises Sumitomo Mitsui Finance and Leasing Company Limited (“SMFL”) and SMFL LCI Helicopters Limited (“SMFLH”) on Its Purchase of Macquarie Rotorcraft Limited

Milbank LLP has advised Sumitomo Mitsui Finance and Leasing Company, Limited (“SMFL”) and SMFL LCI Helicopters Limited (“SMFLH”), a joint venture helicopter leasing company with LCI Investments Limited (“LCI”), on their acquisition of Macquarie Rotorcraft Limited ("MRL"), Macquarie Asset Management’s helicopter leasing business.

MRL is a leading global helicopter lessor with an owned fleet of 121 leased aircraft that operate in offshore transportation, emergency medical services, search and rescue and utility markets.

Milbank advised SMFL and SMFLH on all corporate/M&A, aircraft finance and tax aspects of the transaction.

The Milbank team was led by partners James Cameron (Transportation and Space, London) and Jordan Simpson (Corporate/Private Equity, London), alongside special counsel Siddharth Sharma (Transportation and Space, London) and associate Michael Terry (Corporate/Private Equity, London), and also included associates Andrew McAdam (Transportation and Space, London) and Aoibheann Harkin (Corporate/Private Equity, London).

Specialist input was provided by partners Andrea Hamilton (Antitrust, London), Ross Shepard (Corporate, New York), Andrew Walker (Tax, New York), Alan Rafferty (Tax, London), Mike Shah (Executive Compensation and Corporate Governance, New York) and Bijan Ganji (Transportation and Space, Washington, DC), and associates Michael Rivkin (Tax, New York), Liam Markham (Tax, London) and Brian Murff (Transportation and Space, Washington, DC).

Milbank corporate partner Jordan Simpson said, “We are delighted to have supported SMFL and SMFLH on this market-leading transaction, which highlights both our strength in corporate M&A and aviation finance.“ Transportation & Space partner James Cameron said, “We are honoured to have represented SMFL and SMFLH on such a significant transaction for the sector. Many congratulations to SMFL, SMFLH, Macquarie and Macquarie Rotorcraft Limited.”