CIT Provides $35 Million Financing for Mesa Airlines
September 22 2016 - 8:30AM
Business Wire
- Mesa Airlines Provides Regional Air
Service for American Airlines and United Airlines
- Mesa Is the Fourth-Largest Independent
Regional Carrier in the U.S. and Plays a Crucial Role in the
Overall U.S. Commercial Air Network
- Mesa Flies More Than 616 Daily
Departures for American and United to 105 Cities, 37 States, Canada
and Mexico
- The Airline Operates a Fleet of 122
Large Canadair and E-jet Regional Aircraft
CIT Group Inc. (NYSE:CIT), cit.com, a leading provider of
commercial lending and leasing services, today announced that CIT
Aerospace, Defense & Government Finance provided a $35 million
senior secured credit facility to Mesa Airlines, a provider of
regional air service for American Airlines and United Airlines.
Mesa Airlines is the fourth-largest independent regional carrier in
the United States. The financing supports the refinancing of
existing debt as well as provides working capital. Financing was
provided by CIT Bank, N.A., the principal bank subsidiary of CIT.
Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. CIT Treasury
Management is also providing cash management services to Mesa
Airlines.
Michael Lotz, President and Chief Financial Officer, Mesa
Airlines, said, “We are an airline that is growing rapidly, having
added multiple aircraft to our fleet over the last few years. We
knew we would appreciate CIT’s experience and comfort with lending
to the commercial aerospace sector given their track record and
heritage in the sector. We are further pleased that CIT was able to
offer us treasury management services, which will help us maximize
our liquidity and effectively utilize our deposits.”
Burt Feinberg, President, CIT Commercial & Industrial
Finance, said, “Mesa’s agreements with major U.S. airlines provide
them a stable source of customers. As an independent regional
carrier, Mesa plays a crucial role in the overall U.S. commercial
air network by transporting 32,000 passengers a day to their
mainline partners’ airport hubs. Mesa benefits from strong
leadership, a favorable fleet mix, with an emphasis on larger
regional aircraft, and a diversified regional network based out of
Phoenix, Dallas, Houston and Dulles airports. During this
transaction, we leveraged our deep commercial lending experience to
develop a financial solution that would effectively support Mesa’s
strategic objectives. We look forward to working with Mesa
again.”
John Heskin, Director, CIT Aerospace, Defense & Government
Finance, said, “The large regional jets operated by Mesa are
ideally suited to today’s independent regional carrier environment
and the needs of the airlines Mesa supports, positioning Mesa for
further growth. We are glad we had the opportunity to apply our
aerospace financing expertise in providing this facility to Mesa,
and further pleased that we were able to offer Mesa a treasury
management solution that will help them optimize their cash flow.
These financial solutions will support Mesa’s continued operational
success as well as its anticipated growth.”
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About Mesa Airlines
Founded on a mesa in New Mexico in 1982 and headquartered in
Phoenix since 1998, Mesa Airlines provides regional air service for
American Airlines under the American Eagle banner and for United
Airlines under the United Express brand. Mesa operates 126 aircraft
with more than 616 daily system departures to 105 cities, 37
states, the District of Columbia, Canada and Mexico—and has seven
additional E175s coming in 2016. The company's agreements with its
partners are among the longest in the regional industry and extend
to 2025 (American) and 2028 (United). mesa-air.com
About CIT
Founded in 1908, CIT (NYSE:CIT) is a financial holding company
with more than $65 billion in assets. Its principal bank
subsidiary, CIT Bank, N.A., (Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender) has
more than $30 billion of deposits and more than $40 billion of
assets. It provides financing, leasing and advisory services
principally to middle market companies across a wide variety of
industries primarily in North America, and equipment financing and
leasing solutions to the transportation sector. It also offers
products and services to consumers through its Internet bank
franchise and a network of retail branches in Southern California,
operating as OneWest Bank, a division of CIT Bank, N.A. cit.com
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Media RelationsMatt.Klein@cit.comorCIT INVESTOR
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PresidentBarbara.Callahan@cit.com
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