Sidley Represents United Airlines Ventures in UAV Sustainable Flight Fund Additional Capital Raise Increasing Size to Nearly US$200 Million

Sidley represented United Airlines Ventures in connection with its additional capital raise for the United Airlines Ventures Sustainable Flight Fund^SM (SFF), increasing its size to nearly US$200 million as it added new partners American Express Global Business Travel, Aramco Ventures, Aviation Capital Group, Bank of America, Boston Consulting Group, Groupe ADP, Hawaiian Airlines, and JetBlue Ventures. SFF is a first-of-its-kind investment vehicle designed to support start-ups focused on decarbonizing air travel by accelerating the research, production, and technologies associated with sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). SFF launched in February 2023 with more than US$100 million in investments from United and its inaugural limited partners Air Canada, Boeing, GE Aerospace, JPMorgan Chase, and Honeywell. Through SFF, participants will invest alongside United in SAF technology and production start-ups identified by United.

The Sidley team was led by partners Kevin P. Lewis (Transportation) and Benson R. Cohen (Investment Funds), with substantial assistance from senior managing associate Brad Meissen (Investment Funds; Emerging Companies and Venture Capital) . The team also included EJ Lee and Jacob Sitto (both Investment Funds); John T. Schaff and Nathan Enfield (both Tax); and Paul M. McBride (Energy and Infrastructure).