in Capital Markets , Aviation Banks and Lenders
Thursday 9 April 2026
Aircraft buyers: ITE and Blackstone pick DAE for jumbo leasing sidecar
ITE and Blackstone Credit & Insurance (BXCI) have announced a new aircraft leasing sidecar with Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE).
The BXCI investor group will include capital from funds managed by ITE Management, L.P., a strategic partner of BXCI, with the aim to deploy $1.6 billion of aircraft assets annually via a new long-term global investment programme dubbed Equator.
DAE will source the assets from third parties, and DAE’s Aircraft Investor Services (AIS) group will manage the assets owned by Equator. Ishka understands that Equator will be able to source a mix of young and mid-life latest tech and current-tech narrowbodies and widebodies. One source familiar with the deal states that the leasing sidecar will effectively mirror DAE’s aircraft origination efforts.
BXCI acquired a minority stake in ITE last March. In addition to aircraft leasing and lending, ITE invests in rail and containers as well as other industrial transportation infrastructure. Equator is the second major aviation announcement from BXCI this year. In January, the firm announced an aircraft engine leasing partnership with Willis, which will deploy over $1 billon in the next two years (see Insight: “Willis’ CFO Scott Flaherty talks private credit, engine leasing, and aircraft acquisitions”).
“We are pleased to expand our aviation capabilities alongside DAE, a leading aircraft lessor with deep technical expertise and longstanding relationships with airlines and OEMs,” said Aneek Mamik, senior MD and the head of financial services for asset-based finance at BXCI. “This programme underscores BXCI’s focus on deploying flexible capital into high-quality investments backed by hard assets.”
Source: Ishka Research
The Ishka View
BXCI and ITE’s new leasing platform represents one of the largest aircraft leasing sidecars to date. This is a significant announcement in the aircraft leasing space, as the platform will be a significant buyer of aircraft assets. Ishka estimates that $1.6 billion in aircraft assets equates to around $400 million in equity commitments annually between the different parties- a considerable and sustained investment in the sector.
Similar to the Willis announcement, BXCI’s investment in ITE suggests a clear interest in real assets and echoes the continued trend of private credit moving beyond simple aircraft debt deals to direct equity investments in aircraft and engine assets. It is also a notable coup for DAE, boosting the firm’s ability to source larger deals with airlines and within the aircraft leasing secondary market.
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