One of the biggest achievements of Steven Udvar-Hazy's storied career has been a decades-old secret to most in the industry: It was he who leased Ryanair its first few Boeing 737s. Some may ask why that is a big deal. There are several reasons why. The least spectacular is that he helped create one of the most successful airlines in the world. But to understand the real significance, one has to dig deeply into one of the biggest rivalries in aviation history-between Udvar-Hazy, who invented aircraft leasing in the U.S., and Tony Ryan, who did the same in Ireland with Guinness Peat Aviation (GPA). Ryan also happened to be the co-founder of Ryanair, and there was no way Udvar-Hazy's International Lease Finance Corp. (ILFC) would ever lease an aircraft to Ryanair.
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