The last two weeks have confirmed that the aircraft industry will bounce back in 2010 after suffering losses of over €9.4bn last year. Airlines are still wary about buying new planes but they will happily lease them, and aircraft lessors from Los Angeles to Hong Kong are frantically buying up new stock to cater for the demand. For aircraft makers like Boeing and Airbus the 2008 financial crash is starting to seem like ancient history.

At Farnborough air show last week new orders came to almost $30bn and there has been plenty of activity away from the show over the past two weeks as well. Companies like Hong Kong Aviation and the International Lease Finance Corporation have secured big deals.

Air Lease Corporation buys 60 Next-Generation 737-800s; Avolon buys 12

In many ways Air Lease Corporation, a new American leasing company headed by Steven Udvar-Hazy is setting the trend among aircraft lessors. Last week it snapped up 60 Next-Generation 737-800s from Boeing.  The agreement includes 54 firm orders and six options, with delivery scheduled through 2017. At list prices, the deal is worth roughly $4.5bn.

“We have selected the Boeing Next-Generation 737-800 as a cornerstone of our growing commercial aircraft lease fleet. The 737-800 represents an opportunity for our wide range of airline clients to operate this most economical, fuel efficient and versatile 150-189 passenger airplane, on a wide variety of airline missions profitably,” said Steven F. Udvar-Hazy, chairman and CEO of Air Lease Corporation.

In another significant move Avolon, an Irish based aircraft leasing company has ordered 12 Boeing Next-Generation 737-800 jetliners. The order is worth $921m.

Jim Albaugh, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes said the Avolon order "is especially significant because it is a brand-new player in the leasing industry, having just launched in May and established offices around the world.”

Albaugh said the fact that Avolon choose the 737 "is another indicator of the 737's value to airlines and investors. Their entry into the marketplace is another signal that both the aviation industry and the air transport sector are recovering – and that's good news for all of us."

Air Lease Corporation’s and Avolon’s orders round off a great two weeks for Boeing. At the Farnborough airshow last week 55 orders for 737-800s were made including 40 by GE Capital Aviation Services totalling $3bn and 15 by low-cost carrier Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA totalling $1.15bn.

GE electric beats its own prediction at Farnborough

Another company which did well at Farnborough was General Electric Co., the world’s largest maker of jet engines. At the show last week it got the most orders with more than $16.1bn in equipment and service deals.

About $3bn came from Emirates’ order for Boeing 777- ERs, which exclusively use the GE90 engine. Emirates also placed a $4.8bn-order for Engine Alliance’s GP7200 to power the 32 A380s the carrier ordered last month. Engine Alliance is co-owned by GE and United Technologies Corp.’s Pratt & Whitney.

GE Aviation CEO David Joyce said: “The level of activity at the show demonstrates that the aviation industry is beginning to emerge from the economic downturn.”

GE beat its own prediction of getting $13bn in orders at the show. Its $16.1bn total includes partners Safran SA, which makes CFM International engines with GE, and the Engine Alliance. GE’s orders have been strengthened by a growing demand for engines for narrow-body planes such as Boeing Co.’s 737 and Airbus SAS’s A320.

Last week, lessors including GE’s plane-leasing unit ordered more than 200 narrow-body aircraft. Emirates was the largest airline to order new planes.

Pratt’s orders along with partners came to $3.65bn. The orders came from companies like Malaysia Airlines, which ordered engines valued at $680m for 17 Airbus A330s. Rolls-Royce Group Plc announced about $1.61bn in deals. Both Pratt & Whitney and Rolls-Royce make up about one-third of the International Aero Engines partnership for engines on Airbus’s A320.

The GE-Safran partnership provides engines exclusively for 737s and competes with IAE on the A320, while the Engine Alliance with Pratt & Whitney provides turbines for Airbus’s A380 model, competing with a solo offering from Rolls-Royce.

Airbus: “the recession is over”

In another encouraging move Airbus SAS, the world’s largest maker of commercial aircraft, lifted its order target for this year to more than 400 jets.

The Toulouse-based company won orders for 133 aircraft valued at more than $13bn, and commitments for another 122 jets, bringing the total value of accords at the Farnborough Air Show to $28bn, the company said at the show.

“This was a good air show for us and good for the industry” Airbus CEO Tom Enders said at a briefing. “We signed more contracts than we anticipated.”

Airbus sales chief John Leahy said “the recession is definitely over” as global traffic routes fill up and leasing companies resume purchases. Aircraft lessors accounted for the bulk of firm deals at Farnborough. Leahy said last week he aimed to double the number of orders pulled in so far this year during the show.

Enders said the company will achieve its production target of more than 20 A380 Superjumbos this year, and that Airbus aims to sign up one more customer for the jet in 2010. The aircraft is operated by five airlines to date, including Air France KLM Group and Deutsche Lufthansa AG. Emirates is the largest buyer of the plane, with 90 in total on order.

Finnair leasing two 270-seat Airbus A340-300 widebodies

And Finnair is leasing two 270-seat Airbus A340-300 widebodies for its long-haul traffic needs. The airline also operates a fleet of twin-engine A330-300s on long-haul routes and in late 2010 receives its eighth of eight A330-300s ordered directly from Airbus.

The aircraft will be taken on operating leases of approximately four years from International Lease Finance Corporation (ILFC) a Los Angeles based company. The aircraft will join the Finnair fleet in late 2010 and early 2011.

Mika Vehviläinen, Finnair’s president and CEO said: “We have recently announced an increase in Asian traffic and we need additional capacity. This decision will enable us to satisfy growth needs until we take delivery of the new-generation Airbus A350 aircraft.”

Finnair currently has seven Airbus A330-300 and five A340-300 long-haul aircraft, which fly to nine destinations in Asia as well as to New York. At the end of this year, the airline will receive its eighth new A330-300, completing its firm A330 orders with Airbus. With the additional two A340-300s, Finnair’s long-haul fleet will grow to 15 Airbus aircraft by the beginning of next year.

“All of our Airbus long-haul aircraft have an excellent business class with lie-flat or full-flat seats,” says Vehviläinen. “Moreover, we can use the long-haul aircraft flexibly on long scheduled traffic and leisure flights, depending on the season. This ensures the most efficient possible use of the aircraft at different times of the year.”

Non-stop daily service between Helsinki and Singapore

In May 2011, Finnair will launch daily non-stop service between Helsinki and Singapore. The Finnair flight will be the only direct connection between Northern Europe and Singapore. For Asian passengers, the Singapore route will offer onward connections via Finnair’s route network to 50 European destinations.

“Finnair’s Asian strategy has worked extremely well. Demand has continually strengthened and now is the right time to increase capacity and boost our market share in Asia’s growing market,” says Vehviläinen.

The carrier is also increasing the frequency of its non-stop flights between Helsinki and Hong Kong. Instead of the current seven flights, Finnair is to operate 12 flights a week on the route from June 2011. For spring 2011, Finnair also plans to add more frequencies to its other existing Asian destinations.

“Our Asian routes are also important in terms of cargo. The A340 aircraft, moreover, will bring additional capacity to meet the needs of Asia’s rapidly strengthening cargo demand,” says Vehviläinen.

Finnair owns 34 and leases 27 of the 61 aircraft now in its fleet, leasing 10 jets from ILFC.

“ILFC is pleased to be able to support Finnair’s growth as it implements its Asia strategy and other strategic initiatives and we look forward to delivering these A340 aircraft in the months ahead and continuing the expansion of our relationship with Finnair,” says Philip Scruggs, ILFC’s chief marketing officer.

Hong Kong Aviation will double its fleet

This week Hong Kong Aviation showed that Asian aircraft lessors are following the global trend in aircraft leasing. The company which already owns 68 planes says it wants to double its fleet within 18 months. It will raise money through sources including debt and private equity.

Hong Kong Aviation, which is also backed by Bravia Capital Partners, is mainly considering single-aisle planes such as Airbus SAS A320s and Boeing Co. 737s, as well as larger models including A330s, 777s and 787s.

Hong Kong Aviation’s chief executive officer Mathis Shinnick said this week: "We're looking at the aircraft as an investment entity. The aircraft-leasing business is a very stable business."

Parent HNA Group Co. this week agreed to inject the leasing unit into Hong Kong-listed Lung Cheong International Holdings Ltd. to widen access to capital markets. The value of China's leased fleet could surpass $130bn by 2025 as airlines add more planes and make more use of leasing, according to a Lung Cheong statement.

HNA Group intends to inject two plane lessors into Lung Cheong in return for a HK$6bn ($772m) stake, according to a July 13 announcement. The deal is undergoing due diligence and may be completed in four months.

On July 12 the company announced plans to buy three A320s that will be delivered to Indian carrier IndiGo from 2011. The planes, worth $200m at list prices, were purchased with support from Chinese lenders.

Hong Kong Aviation earlier this year completed the acquisition of 68 planes from the collapsed Australian company Allco Finance Group Ltd. The planes are leased to carriers including Qantas Airways Ltd., Emirates and British Airways Plc.