Guggenheim Aviation opts for three more 777 Freighters

Guggenheim Aviation opts for three more 777 Freighters Guggenheim Aviation Partners, part of investment firm Guggenheim Partners, has closed its second aviation fund after exercising options to purchase three more 777 Freighters from Boeing.
   The order from Guggenheim Aviation Partner Fund II (GAIF II) is valued at about $750 million at list prices and was recently posted to the Boeing Web site attributed to an unidentified customer.
   GAIF II owns or has contracted to purchase 27 aircraft including six 777Fs and four 747-8Fs. The fund seeks to obtain about 100 to 125 aircraft with a total value in excess of $3 billion.
   Other Guggenheim Aviation Partners-managed funds have ordered six 747-400ERFs and have contracted to have seven 747-400 passenger planes modified into freighters.
   'We appreciate both the support from our initial fund investor base as well as the support from our many new investors, all of which will allow us to maintain our focus on investing in the commercial aircraft and engine sectors, particularly within the medium and long haul freight market,' said Stephen Rimmer, Guggenheim Aviation Partners’ executive officer.
   “The 777 Freighter is an ideal complement to our fleet and has unique capabilities that supplement and extend our leasing strategy. Our focus on the freight market played a significant role in the positive performance of our other investment fund and appealed to investors of GAIF II which raised $737 million of capital commitments.”
   Boeing has orders from 11 customers for 82 of the 777Fs, in total worth more than $20 billion at today’s list prices. The first aircraft is scheduled for delivery to Air France in the fourth quarter of 2008.