Dublin based aircraft leasing firm, Awas has taken delivery of the first aircraft in its order of 79 brand new Airbus A320s.

The aircraft is being leased to Jetstar Pacific Airlines and was handed over to the airline in Hamburg yesterday. The remainder of the aircraft will deliver between now and 2015.

"As we enter a significant growth phase of the business, the delivery of the first of our 79 A320s represents an exciting time in the history of AWAS. Our customers recognise the efficiencies which can be achieved through leasing new aircraft, such as the A320. For this reason, we have a strong pipeline of new aircraft coming into the fleet over the next five years" said Ray Sisson, president and CEO of Awas.

He added: "We have already placed nearly 30% of our pipeline aircraft, recently announcing several multi-aircraft transactions on A320s including deals with Royal Jordanian, Air Via and Frontier. We are proud to deliver the first new A320 to Jetstar Pacific and build on the existing relationship we have with the Jetstar Group of companies.”

GECAS delivers 737-800 to Japan Airlines

Meanwhile GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS), the commercial aircraft leasing and financing arm of GE, has announced the delivery of a new Boeing 737-800 aircraft to Japan Airlines following a purchase-and-leaseback transaction with the airline. The aircraft is part of an existing order agreement between Japan Airlines and Boeing.

A longtime customer of GE, Japan Airlines is based in Tokyo, and currently has a fleet of more than 200 aircraft.