GE Capital Aviation services (GECAS), which manages the aircraft fleet of debt laden GPA Group, has entered a $4 billion deal to buy five Boeing 7775 and 102 Boeing 737 jets.
The company, set up after GE Capital rescued GPA in September 1993, said the value of the firm orders is over $4 billion.
"These are all brand new orders," said the GECAS president, Mr Jim Johnson. "It represents a substantial commitment from our parent company, GE Capital."
The GE Capital president, Mr Denis Nayden, stressed that the order only sightly increases GE Capital's investment in aircraft, which makes up about 6 per cent of its $150 billion in assets.
The company said it expects to take delivery of around one plane a month in 1996, increasing to two planes a month in 1997. "The deal will run until at least the early 2000s, depending on the number of options we take up," said Mr Johnson.
All the funding and commitments would come from GE Capital, a wholly owned unit of the diversified industrial group, General Electric Company, in Stamford, Connecticut.
GECAS owns around 450 of the 850 aircraft on its books and manages the other 400 but the numbers change constantly, depending on orders.
The Minister for Finance, Mr Quinn, will begin his speech shortly before 4 p.m. Following on from last year's precedent, his speech will be relatively short, probably just over one hour.
The following are the expected main points of the Budget, in the approximate order in which Mr Quinn will address them under the headings: Rewarding Work, Promoting Enterprise and Social Solidarity. The space to the right will allow you to note the actual changes announced.
