Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Allen & Gledhill are advising BOC Aviation, the aircraft unit of Bank of China, on its IPO on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange that is expected to raise up to $1.1 billion.

Linklaters is representing the joint sponsors and underwriters, which include BOCI Asia Limited, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley Asia, while Allen & Overy is advising Bank of China on Hong Kong and U.S law. 

Singapore-based BOC Aviation is betting on booming demand for air transportation in Asia and particularly China, the world's second-largest economy. The lessor - the world's fifth-largest by fleet size and fourth-largest by fleet value, according to its prospectus - used the IPO to raise funds for new aircraft.

The BOC Aviation IPO has attracted 11 cornerstone investors including Boeing, sovereign wealth fund China Investment Corp., and Temasek Holdings’ Fullerton Fund Management.

U.S. planemaker Boeing forecasts Chinese demand of 6,330 new planes over the next 20 years with a total value of nearly $1 trillion, making China one of the biggest markets for the aircraft manufacturing industry. BOC Aviation, the biggest lessor in the region, owns 270 planes, underscoring the growth prospects in what is set to be the world largest avation market. The company had 241 planes on order by the end of last year.