A Helicopter Leasing Special - celebrating the 10th anniversary of the launch of Milestone Aviation.

Looking back at how helicopter leasing has evolved and what is next.

Stephen Cook, Executive Director, Macquarie Bank

Olivier Piot, Founder and CEO, Nova Capital group

Pat Sheedy, President and CEO, Milestone Aviation

This episode is sponsored by NOVA CAPITAL

Established in 2002, Nova Capital is a privately owned leasing company, with offices in Ireland, France, and Portugal.

We provide flexible and responsive Asset financing solutions to Helicopter and Fixed Wing operators primarily in the on-shore mission critical services space.

Stephen joined Macquarie in 1986 and has taken a leading role in developing and implementing structured asset transactions for Macquarie globally. He lead the Bank offshore in the early 90’s, and was responsible for establishing Macquarie’s operations in London.

In 2005 Stephen transformed what had been a significant advisor / arranger practice into a start-up principal business initially focussed on Aircraft. In 2006 Stephen led the acquisition of the assets of GATX’s Air business. This enabled establishment of a fully functional Aircraft operating lease business, Macquarie AirFinance.

Macquarie currently has over 200 aircraft on its balance sheet, of which 90% are in production narrow body types (A320 / 737-800’s). They are leased into over 40 jurisdictions.

In 2011 Stephen moved from Macquarie Capital to Macquarie Bank to consolidate all the Groups holdings across Air, Rail, Shipping, Helicopters and Engines and further develop this segment of the bank's business.

Olivier Piot, Founder and CEO, Nova Capital group
Olivier founded Nova Capital Group in 2002, a privately owned investment and advisory group of companies fully dedicated to asset finance.

Acting as group CEO, Olivier turned the Nova Capital Aviation into a leading globally recognized helicopter and fix-wing aircraft lessor with a proven 18 years track-record within the industry. With a current fleet of 85+ helicopters and 14 aircraft in operation, the company reached a total fleet value of circa 450 M$ as at Q2-end 2020. Nova Capital Aviation is a unique full service and highly adaptable leasing platform, exclusively dedicated to the on-shore aviation services industry.

Prior to the inception of Nova Capital, Olivier held some senior management positions within a leading French banking institution, including among others, Senior Vice President and head of Structured Asset Finance practice. He headed a team of professionals in charge of sourcing, structuring, and managing complex asset finance transactions in various sectors such as aviation, shipping, rail, energy, and real estate, mostly using optimized structured leasing solutions.

Olivier started his career at the Paris Bar,working as a qualified lawyer with a US Law firm, specializing in asset finance transactions.

Olivier graduated from Institut d’Etudes Politques de Paris (IEP Paris). He holds a postgraduate degree in business and tax law from University of Paris II-Assas and was subsequently admitted to the Paris Bar. Olivier was also a lecturer at University of Paris IX-Dauphine for several years, and is a regular contributor at some major asset finance and leasing events.

Pat Sheedy is Milestone Aviation's President and CEO. Having previously led the underwriting and portfolio management function at Milestone Aviation and having had overall risk responsibility for GE Engine Leasing and GECAS’ cargo business, Pat has 20 years of international financial services experience. He trained as a chartered accountant with Deloitte in Ireland and London, where he spent four years in a number of roles including In Audit and Assurance, Corporate Finance and Corporate Recovery, prior to joining GE in 2004.

Prior to joining Milestone, Pat  spent the majority of his GE career working in Aviation Risk Management with a particular focus on Emerging Markets, holding a number of senior risk positions including Managing Director for Portfolio and Underwriting and Senior Vice President and Regional Risk Manager for GECAS in Dubai, covering the Middle East, Africa and Russia.

Pat obtained his Bachelor of Business Studies Degree from University Of Limerick Ireland and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland.

Helicopter Investor Town Hall - Helicopter Leasing Special