This week on the channel +328K views this week

Who owns your airliner? Mentour Now! untangles aircraft leasing

Ben Watts uses a Hawaiian Airlines A330 to explain the companies behind a single jet, and why their decisions reach aircraft designers.

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Mentour Now! Story of November 15, 2026Trari Newsroom

Why this story? The channel's weekly summary: what went up this week, what is drawing views now, and where the channel stands among similar channels.

The Secret Companies That Control Aviation

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1:27A Hawaiian Airlines A330 illustrates how separate companies can own and finance aircraft and engines.
9:48Delivery backlogs and fleet flexibility help explain why airlines lease aircraft and lessors favour narrowbodies.
15:19Wet leasing supplies aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance together.
17:05Sale-and-leaseback agreements let airlines sell aircraft and continue operating them while releasing cash.
20:34Watts argues that lessors' financial exposure gives them influence over manufacturers' decisions about new aircraft.

The airline name painted on a fuselage doesn't necessarily tell you who owns the aircraft. In Mentour Now!'s only new upload this week, Ben Watts follows the paperwork behind commercial flying, where even an engine can have its own ownership structure.

"The Secret Companies That Control Aviation" has reached roughly 126,000 views. Watts starts with a Hawaiian Airlines Airbus A330, unpicking the separate companies used to arrange financing and limit liability. From there, the essay widens to AerCap and other lessors whose fleets supply airlines around the world.

The useful distinction is between borrowing an aircraft and buying an entire flying operation. Watts explains wet leasing, where aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance come together, then sale-and-leaseback deals, which let airlines sell a jet and lease it back as a way of raising cash. His answer to the title's promise comes near the end: he argues that lessors' exposure to reliability and maintenance costs gives them considerable influence over which new aircraft manufacturers develop. The episode includes a sponsored segment.

Viewers are supplying ideas for the next trip behind the scenes: aircraft maintenance, fuel purchasing and the reservation systems passengers rarely think about. One former airport-ramp worker connects the subject with the much larger industry hidden beyond the passenger cabin.

It was a slower week for the channel overall, with subscribers unchanged and daily views well below their usual level. Nearby in aviation, blancolirio's daily viewing is above its norm. Mentour Now!'s strongest ongoing draw is its older carbon-fibre recycling essay, now past a million views, followed by its examination of autonomous-flight technology and the MAX 10 certification video.

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What viewers say

I would like to see a video that explores aircraft maintenance. Who does it, for what airlines? Is it profitable? What have been the upsides and downsides of it?
@jimchoffSee it on YouTube
Having worked on the airport ramp, I find this kind of behind-the-scenes aviation information fascinating. There’s so much more to the aviation industry than what passengers see. Great video! ✈️
@bencorts5053See it on YouTube
It was lovely to see a plane like the HiFly A380 landing at my country's main airport, precisely because of a limited wet lease. Sometimes, for avgeeks, it gives us the kind of opportunities we won't see until we travel to other countries.
@LaczProSee it on YouTube

4 more comments

This nerdy in depth type of video is exactly why I love this channel. Keep them coming!
@martingrimmitt3992See it on YouTube
Definitely not a boring topic, I love these videos which focus on the more “behind the scenes” aspects of aviation.
@marcellkovacs5452See it on YouTube
An interesting subject would be to look at systems such as GDS (reservation), DCS (departure control), BRS (baggage reconciliation) etc and the industry players behind them such as Amadeus, Travelport, RTX and others.
@NilsJohannssenSee it on YouTube
I wouldn't mind a deep dive into the fuel purchasing. Petter did a short video on it a while ago, but a deeper dive into the intricacies of it would be nice, especially with current world events causing issues for fuel prices.
@BabyMakRSee it on YouTube