Neelam Mathews

After years of difficulties importing business aircraft to India due to complex approval processes and high import duties, operators are now pivoting toward lease options to refresh and expand fleets. However, as became apparent in discussions at the recent Corporate Jet Investor conference in Delhi, these options are not without complexity and require expert help.
Gujarat International Finance Tec‑City (GIFT City), which is India’s new financial services hub, is facilitating aircraft leases in part by allowing foreign lessors to set up a special purpose vehicle with significant tax advantages. The center is mainly focused on Indian aircraft operators seeking offshore‑style benefits without the friction that can come with these terms.
For now, Indian lessors are mainly taking the lead with both business aircraft and commercial airliner transactions. Foreign providers have largely stayed out of the former sector because it remains fairly small and fragmented, and weaker credit profiles among local operators make it hard for global players to justify the risk of backing deals, conference delegates heard.
Local lessors find it easier to understand the credit profiles of Indian companies. They are also better placed to navigate the processes required by the country’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation. But the CJI conference also heard that lease approvals can drag on for up to three months due to bottlenecks in India’s banking processes.
According to VMAN Aero, it was the first Indian lessor to import business jets through the GIFT City structures. Its founder, Vishok Mansingh, said this marked a breakthrough for an Indian operating lease.
“We look at the lessee’s management capability, not the balance sheet,” Mansingh commented. “The real risk is whether the operator can manage, deploy, and monetize the aircraft consistently enough to keep payments flowing. Operating leases are a made‑for‑India solution, and at GIFT City, there’s no withholding tax, plus a 20‑year tax exemption, which is a strong advantage for corporate jets.”
U.S.-based Global Jet Capital is one foreign company trying to move into the Indian market, which sales director Simon Davies said is now being viewed as an easier place to do business than it was a year ago. Nonetheless, he added that India still needs to allow for faster aircraft repossessions and align its insolvency laws and court procedures with the Cape Town Convention protections for lessors.

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