Seán Dunbar is a Senior CRM Associate & Data Analyst at Aerlytix. He recently completed ISTAT's Professional Development Program (PDP) EMEA across Dublin, Toulouse, and finishing in Copenhagen alongside the ISTAT EMEA conference. The ISTAT PDP EMEA covers four modules including the airline business, aircraft design and manufacturing, and aircraft trading and financing.
We spoke to Seán about the program, what stood out, and how it's changed the way he works with Aerlytix clients.
What made you apply for PDP, and what were you hoping to get out of it?
I’ve been in the aviation finance industry for just over two years now, working at Aerlytix on the Customer Success and Client Delivery (CSCD) team. In that time, I’ve learnt a huge amount about the industry, with my work touching on a wide array of areas within aviation finance, whether that's accurately forecasting maintenance shop visit events, supporting portfolio cashflow reporting, structuring a multi-tranche loan, modelling an ABS waterfall or generating an airline credit rating.
As all this learning has happened with my Aerlytix hat on, I wanted the chance to step into my clients’ shoes for a change. I was looking to gain a better understanding of what they’re trying to achieve and why. That's the main reason I applied for the ISTAT PDP course.
Module I was Airlines, in Dublin. What changed in how you think about an airline’s side of a deal?
Up to now, most of my exposure to the aviation industry has been from the lessor and lender side and what drives their decision making. Getting to see the flip side of the coin and get a better understanding of the complex considerations an airline must make, outside of the pure metal of the aircraft, was fascinating - especially as Aerlytix launches its Airlines product to market.
Christine Rovelli, Chief Revenue Officer at Finnair, gave us a really insightful walk through of how airlines think about network and fleet planning. As a passenger, you never really think about the decisions airlines have to make regarding their route network and how that shapes their fleet composition, planning and revenue models. Having a better understanding of that decision-making process will be especially useful as I take on more airline clients.
I also really enjoyed the lecture on Airline Profit and loss from Clemens Metz, Vice President Treasurer at American Airlines. Having worked closely on the Aerlytix Airline Credit Risk module, it was genuinely useful to get an inside view of how airlines think about their own financial performance.
Module II moved to Toulouse for Aircraft. Did being close to the manufacturing side change how you think about valuation or maintenance forecasting?
Compared to the airline module, I felt like I was on more familiar footing here, but I still came away with some valuable insights. With an MSc in Aerospace Engineering, a lot of the manufacturing and design content felt familiar, though the extra detail on engines was particularly useful. While I've worked with technical teams across at least a dozen clients pulling together engine maintenance data, this helped me get a better grasp of the components involved and how they behave over the lifetime of the engine. I have already found this to be beneficial when assisting clients with maintenance forecasting on advanced engine strategy and engine shop visit events.
Getting a tour of the Airbus factory and showroom was a real bonus and one of the best parts of the course!
Module III was Trading & Finance, back in Dublin. Was there much new ground here you hadn't already picked up, and did it change how you view the decisions and requirements coming from players across the industry?
I got a lot out of this module and found the legal and tax lectures to be particularly insightful, having limited previous exposure to either aspect of the industry. However, my favorite part of this module were the lectures on Financial Products from Vinodh Srinivasan, Managing Director & Co-Head of the Structured Credit Group at Mizuho Securities. I found this especially useful for giving me a bit more context on the financing decisions of our clients. The discussions on EETCs and ABS were timely too, since I've been working closely with our product team on our own ABS product.
The program wrapped up in Copenhagen, timed with the ISTAT EMEA conference. What was that like?
I thought it was a great way to wrap up the program. After spending four modules building relationships with the PDP cohort and learning about the industry, it was great to then be dropped into the middle of the conference where you could meet with people from across the sector and sit in on useful talks and presentations. We also got to round things off with some interesting conversations amongst the course about Fintech in Aviation Finance as well as the future of AI in the industry. This has been a big focus for us internally at Aerlytix recently, so was great to dig into that with the group.
If you had to sum up the biggest shift in how you see the industry now, what would it be?
I think the biggest shift in how I see the industry now is having a better appreciation for what is driving the interests and decision making across the different players in the industry. Having industry leaders talk you through their thought process on how they address challenges in the sector was obviously very valuable, although I often found it was the discussions with classmates that provided the most insight.
How does what you learned show up in your work at Aerlytix now?
I think overall, it’s given me both a broader understanding of the industry alongside a more in-depth appreciation for what drives my client's needs and requirements, be that a portfolio management team in a lessor, a loan origination team in a lender or a fleet management team in an airline. It probably shows up most in my ability to understand their viewpoints faster, pre-empt further queries and suggest more appropriate solutions.
Would you recommend it to a colleague with a similar amount of experience?
Absolutely, I think particularly within Aerlytix where, every day, we work closely with clients from across the industry. Being able to step into their shoes and get a better appreciation for what they are trying to achieve is hugely beneficial for helping them get the most out of our platform.
About ISTAT PDP EMEA
ISTAT PDP EMEA is a four-module program for aviation professionals with 1–5 years of industry experience, covering the airline business, aircraft design and manufacturing, and aircraft trading and financing. Applications for the 2027 program close on the 16th of October. Learn more: https://www.istat.org/Education/ISTAT-PDP/PDP-EMEA