Grizzly Bulls
Financial research concept

Aircraft Lessor Average Lease Assets

is the average asset base used by an aircraft lessor as the denominator for spread metrics and can include more than aircraft held under operating leases.

By Lee BaileyPublished Sep 28, 2026
Research context

See what supports this page, how current it is, and where comparable or historical context is available.

Research date
Sep 28, 2026Use the dated article and cited sources for the definition, examples, and stated limitations.
Operating-model context
13 connected conceptsPart of the reviewed Aircraft Leasing Economics; issuer definitions remain distinct where disclosed.
Company examples
1 reviewed companyRelationships reflect supported examples, not a normalized cross-company KPI ranking.
  1. The denominator is broader than operating-lease aircraft
  2. Held-for-sale and finance-lease assets still affect the capital base
  3. Part of the Aircraft Leasing Economics
  4. See It in Company Research
  5. Continue Research

Aircraft lessor average lease assets are the average lease-related assets used as the denominator in an aircraft lessor's spread calculations. AerCap reported $61.907B of average lease assets for 2025, up from $60.845B in 2024.

The denominator is broader than operating-lease aircraft

AerCap defines lease assets to include:

  • flight equipment held for operating leases;
  • flight equipment held for sale;
  • net investment in finance leases; and
  • maintenance rights assets.

That means average lease assets aren't simply the average net book value of owned aircraft currently on operating leases.

The distinction matters when an investor tries to reproduce annualized net spread. Using only operating-lease flight equipment would change the denominator and produce a different percentage.

Held-for-sale and finance-lease assets still affect the capital base

At year-end 2025 AerCap reported $57.796B of flight equipment held for operating leases, $1.104B held for sale, $1.807B of net investment in finance leases, and $1.336B of maintenance rights. Those year-end balances aren't the same as the annual average, but they show the categories included in the metric.

This is one reason balance-sheet spot values shouldn't be substituted mechanically for an average denominator.

The denominator also needs to stay consistent across periods. A change in average lease assets can come from deliveries, acquisitions, sales, reclassifications, finance leases, or maintenance-right movements. Spread analysis is most useful when the numerator and denominator stay aligned to the issuer's definition.

AerCap's 2025 adjusted net interest margin rose 6% while average lease assets rose 2%, helping annualized net spread increase from 7.5% to 7.8%.

Primary sources: AerCap full-year 2025 results and AerCap 2025 Form 20-F.

Part of the Aircraft Leasing Economics

Connect aircraft deployment and recurring lease revenue with financing spread, depreciation, maintenance obligations, residual-value realization, and fleet renewal.

Browse the full operating model in Company Analysis →
Where this concept fits
  • Asset deployment, recurring rent, and financing spreadCurrent relationship
    Utilization shows how much owned aircraft value is deployed, basic and maintenance rents separate recurring lease economics from maintenance-related receipts, average lease assets supply the capital denominator, and the two net-spread measures show financing economics before and after depreciation and amortization.
    Annualized Net SpreadAverage Lease AssetsCurrent conceptBasic Lease RentsMaintenance RentsNet Spread After DepreciationOwned Aircraft Utilization
  • Fleet renewal and residual-value realization
    The order book supplies the future aircraft pipeline, value-weighted fleet age shows how renewal changes the owned passenger portfolio, and gains on asset sales show realized residual-value outcomes from aircraft and other flight-equipment disposals.
    Aircraft Order BookNet Gain on Sale of AssetsWeighted Average Fleet Age
  • Maintenance condition and acquired-lease accounting
    Maintenance rights capture acquired contractual maintenance condition, accrued maintenance liabilities capture timing and reimbursement obligations, end-of-lease compensation settles aircraft condition at redelivery, and lease premium captures acquired above-market rents that are amortized against lease revenue.
    Accrued Maintenance LiabilityEnd-of-Lease CompensationLease PremiumMaintenance Rights

See It in Company Research

These companies are examples of how the concept is reported or discussed in public filings. Definitions can differ by issuer; these links open company research rather than a normalized metric comparison.

Continue Research

Continue from the concept into the Grizzly Bulls research surface that best matches the next question. These links are research continuations, not recommendations or required steps.

Compare stocks

Compare asset-base productivity

Compare capital-heavy businesses using the asset base that actually supports reported spread, margin, and return measures.

Continue research

Explore more topics in the Financial Research Encyclopedia.