DAE 2023 revenue up 16% to $1.3bn

Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE) total revenue was up 16% from $1.1bn in 2022 to $1.3bn in 2023. It also reported an after tax profit of $350.6 million for the year, a significant improvement from its reported loss of $279.3 million in 2022. In particular, DAE Engineering revenue growth was 31%, which was driven by the needs of airlines in the company's respective region. The company acquired 20 aircraft (10 owned and 10 managed) and sold 30 aircraft (22 owned and 8 managed) in 2023. It also acquired an orderbook of 64 aircraft with near-term delivery positions through a partnership with Boeing. ""All of our 2024 deliveries are contracted and some of our 2025 deliveries are contracted on long-term leases,"" said DAE CEO Firoz Tarapore in an earnings call. Tarapore said that the ""bulk of what we acquired was MAX 8"" aircraft but there is a ""small component of MAX 9s and MAX 10s in the orderbook as well."" ""We have been impacted by the delays that Boeing has announced,"" Tarapore added, ""and to be candid we're not sure that Boeing can deliver on their current contractual commitment because I'm not sure that they can control their destiny right now"". He added that he is confident that Boeing will be able to ""ride the ship"" and assure lessors and lessees that they are ""indeed buying a quality product from a quality organisation"". For 2023, DAE's unsecured debt was 73% of its total, with available liquidity of $4.1bn. At the end of 2023, DAE's total unsecured notes and loans were $5.6bn and total secured notes and loans was $2.04bn, with net loans and borrowings at $7.5bn. Going into 2024, Tarapore is confident that lease rates will ""continue to hold up quite well"" as ""the market still continues to be short of aircraft"" and in turn lessors remain in high demand from its airline clients. He added: ""As we look ahead at some of the issues that the OEMs will have to contend with, we don't see the prospect for significant change there, and therefore, I think that the levels that we are levels that are likely to be sustainable for the rest of the year."" DAE Engineering also confirmed it will be opening a new hangar with five lines that will be operational by the end of 2024.