Risteárd Sheridan, Company Secretary and Chief Compliance Officer at AerCap Holdings, has been appointed Chair of Aircraft Leasing Ireland, the industry representative body announced on 1 July 2026. Sheridan, a governance specialist who joined Dublin-headquartered AerCap in 2017, succeeds Karl Griffin, CEO of Genesis, following a two-year leadership term that saw the industry navigate elevated fuel costs and intensifying consolidation dynamics. Claire Walsh, Senior Vice President and Head of Operations at SkyWorks Leasing (Ireland), assumes the Vice-Chair position and is slated to become Chair in 2028, reflecting the organisation's structured leadership succession model.
The appointment occurs at a pivotal moment for Irish aircraft leasing, which manages approximately 315 billion dollars in assets and supports 8,543 local jobs, according to the ALI. Elizabeth Bowen, ALI Director, noted in her statement that the sector remains one of the fastest-growing areas of international financial services and works collaboratively with government, state agencies and stakeholders globally. Sheridan acknowledged the honour of representing Aircraft Leasing Ireland's membership in a global industry anchored in Ireland, signalling continuity in the association's advocacy efforts. No search firm involvement was identified in publicly available statements regarding the appointment.
Sheridan brings deep governance expertise and a sophisticated understanding of compliance frameworks. Before joining AerCap in April 2017 as Head of Internal Audit, he accumulated extensive experience at the professional services firms KPMG and EY advising companies on governance, financial reporting and control matters. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Business and Legal Studies and a Master's degree in Accounting, both from University College Dublin, and is a Fellow of Chartered Accountants Ireland. Beyond his AerCap role, Sheridan serves as senior independent director at daa plc, where he chairs the Audit and Risk Committee and sits on the Finance Committee. He was previously a non-executive director of the Abbey Theatre, demonstrating involvement in Ireland's cultural institutions.
Aircraft Leasing Ireland represents the representative body for aircraft leasing companies operating in Ireland, formed in July 2018 as a constituent part of Financial Services Ireland within IBEC. The organisation advocates for an industry that has become the world's dominant aircraft leasing hub. Irish-based lessors manage approximately 65 percent of the world's leased commercial aircraft fleet and 69 percent of the value of all globally leased aircraft, underpinning a sector that accounts for more than half a century of aviation finance development. The industry is built on five decades of pioneering leadership dating to the 1975 founding of Guinness Peat Aviation, establishing deep institutional expertise. Major lessors including AerCap and Avolon operate from Irish bases, reinforced by recent consolidation activity such as the SMBC and Air Lease merger that relocated its holding company to Dublin.
Sheridan's appointment reflects the sector's emphasis on governance maturity during a period of industry consolidation and regulatory scrutiny. His compliance and audit background suggests ALI leadership will prioritise governance standards and internal controls oversight, matters increasingly central to aircraft leasing amid ESG requirements and sustainability frameworks adopted by the sector. The global aircraft leasing market is expected to compound at 8 percent annually over the next decade, implying sustained demand for Ireland's ecosystem despite near-term headwinds from fuel costs and macro-economic uncertainty. With Sheridan bringing expertise in financial controls from a major publicly-traded lessor, his two-year term is likely to focus on fortifying industry standards and Ireland's regulatory position against intensifying EU-US tariff negotiations that the sector has advocated against.
