Aviation Capital Group has appointed Tom Baker as its new chief executive officer (CEO) and president, with immediate effect. Baker succeeds Khanh T. Tran, who is retiring from ACG to embark on a new chapter of his career. Khanh will remain with the company until the end of this year to help ensure a smooth transition.
Baker currently serves as executive vice president and chief revenue officer of ACG, with responsibility for ACG’s sales and marketing, trading, technical and aircraft financing solutions teams, with a focus on developing new growth opportunities for the business. He will continue to lead these functions for the immediate future. Baker joined ACG in June 2016 as senior vice president, strategy & analytics, and his primary responsibilities included corporate strategy; financial planning and analysis; and investor relations. Prior to joining ACG, he worked for Goldman Sachs’ Investment Banking Division covering clients in the aviation and transportation sectors.
ACG’s Executive Chair, Mahoko Hara thanked Khanh for his service and leadership over the past four years. “He has been instrumental in guiding ACG through a period of growth and change, which included Tokyo Century’s acquisition of ACG in December 2019 and the seamless transition in ownership thereafter,” she said. “Khanh leaves ACG in a strong position for its next phase of growth and I am excited for ACG’s prospects under Tom’s leadership. Tom is a proven and respected leader who has delivered strong operating results through a relentless commitment to our customers and to our people. I am confident that Tom will lead ACG to achieve great success in the years to come.”
ACG has just reported nine month to end September 2020 revenue of $765 million and net income of $125.5 million. Although like other leasing companies, ACG has had to deal with airline deferrals and delinquent rental payments, the company states that it remains in “active” discussions with its customers and warns that it is likely to continue to provide accommodation arrangements to additional lessees, including adjustments to previous deferral arrangements.
ACG ends the period with cash and cash equivalents of $659.9 million, having raised a significant amount of capital during the past quarter. In July 2020, ACG issued $1bn of senior unsecured notes due December 2024 with a fixed interest rate of 5.50%; and established a $600 million revolving line of credit with Tokyo Century in June 2020, which remains undrawn. Most recently, in September, ACG entered into a $450 million unsecured term loan with Tokyo Century, which borrowed the debt on behalf of ACG and lent the proceeds to ACG via an intercompany loan.