Aircastle acquired by Marubeni and Mizuho Leasing

Aircastle has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by a newly-formed entity controlled by affiliates of Marubeni Corporation (“Marubeni”) and Mizuho Leasing Company (Mizuho Leasing).  Under the terms of the merger agreement, Aircastle shareholders will receive $32 in cash for each common share of Aircastle (other than shares already owned by Marubeni and its affiliates), representing a total valuation of approximately $2.4 billion, or approximately $7.4 billion including debt obligations to be assumed or refinanced net of cash, which is equal to approximately 1.2x current book value per share. Marubeni is expected to increase its position to 75% of the total shares, while Mizuho acquires the remaining 25%. “After a review of