Dubai Aerospace buys Macquarie AirFinance for $7bn

Aircraft lessor Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE) has agreed to buy Macquarie AirFinance (MAF), owned by Australia’s Macquarie Group, for an enterprise value of $7 billion.

The combined company will have a fleet of 1,029 owned, managed and committed aircraft and will serve 191 airline customers in 79 countries, DAE said in a statement.  

Narrowbody aircraft will make up nearly 70 percent of the combined fleet. 

The acquisition will add 37 airline customers, including carriers in seven new countries. 

The transaction will be funded with a mix of debt and equity, DAE said, without providing a split.

DAE chief executive Firoz Tarapore said that MAF’s addition will create a “bigger, stronger, more diversified and well-capitalized aircraft leasing company”. 

“Our increased scale and presence, along with an enhanced order book, will allow us to serve an additional number of customers with competitively priced offerings.”

DAE’s fleet of owned and managed aircraft rose by 38 percent year on year to 604 at year-end 2025.

MAF’s fleet consists of 352 commercial aircraft (including future commitments) leased to 83 airline customers across 48 countries.

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The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the second half of 2026. 

The Investment Corporation of Dubai, the principal investment arm of the Dubai government, owns DAE.

Willie Walsh, director general of the International Air Transport Association industry trade body, told AGBI last year he believed aircraft leasing companies in the region are profiting from prolonged delivery delays at aircraft makers Boeing and Airbus.