Bank of China subsidiary BOC Aviation Limited has delivered the last of seven new Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft for lease to TUI Travel Aviation Finance Limited. The aircraft are powered by CFM LEAP-1B engines.

"Following the international recertification of the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, we delivered all seven aircraft to TUI in just four months, which reflects a high level of teamwork on both sides," says BOC Aviation chief executive officer Robert Martin.

Tom Chandler, managing director, fleet and asset management, TUI Group, adds: “We are very pleased to have expanded our relationship with BOC Aviation through these financing transactions, agreed in two tranches, August 2020 and October 2020, with the completion of the deliveries in time for the peak summer season."

Holiday travel from Germany has increased dramatically in recent months, as German citizens have taken advantage of relaxed Covid-19 restrictions for travel to and from many European countries.

TUI is the world’s leading tourism group, with a portfolio of tour operators, 1,600 travel agencies, five airlines with around 150 aircraft, over 400 hotels, and 15 cruise liners. Its shares are listed on the Open Market at the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, and are a constituent of the FTSE 250 index.

BOC Aviation has a fleet of 549 aircraft owned, managed and on order, and can provide customers with large-scale financing solutions. This can involve placing aircraft from its own order book, as well as sale and leaseback deals involving aircraft ordered by airlines themselves.

In March BOC Aviation delivered the final aircraft of a ten new Airbus A320neo aircraft in a transaction with Air China. The same month it signed purchase-and-leaseback agreements with InterGlobe Aviation (IndiGo) of India for eight new Airbus A320Neo aircraft, scheduled to be delivered in the second half of 2021.