David Y. Bannard
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David Y. Bannard

Of Counsel

617.329.4687C 978.844.4149

With nearly 30 years of experience representing airports, Dave Bannard understands the business as well as the law of airports. As primarily a transactional attorney, he brings that experience to the negotiation of agreements between airports and airlines, concessionaires, and other parties to develop provisions that work in the real world and that represent the understanding of all parties. Listening is critical to the way Dave works—every airport has unique goals, and he works closely with his clients to identify and achieve them. Dave prefers a more collegial style of negotiation that enables his airport clients to establish a strong working relationship with their counterparties, but he will not hesitate to call out improper or unreasonable demands by the other side.

Dave is a transactional lawyer that brings financial acumen to his work in both airport finance and airport-airline negotiations. Dave’s understanding of the financial underpinnings of his airport clients is the foundation of his work and leads to effective, flexible, and responsive legal work that serves his airport clients’ best interests. He serves as bond and disclosure counsel for airport financings and has participated in negotiating nearly a dozen airport-airline agreements and rate ordinances in the last four years. An experienced transactional attorney, Dave also works with airports in procuring and negotiating agreements with concessionaires, including both in-terminal providers and rental car companies and other specialized concessionaires.

Dave’s bankruptcy experience has a transactional focus and has resulted in the restructuring of crucial airport agreements and continuity of operations during bankruptcies of airlines and rental car companies. His bankruptcy experience informs his drafting of agreements to aid airports in ensuring that they retain and recovery the revenues to which they are entitled. He has participated in several novel public-private partnerships, including the negotiation of the full range of agreements supporting a privately developed passenger terminal, the transfer of several small airports to private operation and the development of another privately operated air carrier terminal. Dave has also successfully defended numerous Part 16 administrative actions brought before the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) against his airport clients. Having served in-house overseeing all transactional matters for a dozen years at a major U.S. airport, Dave is familiar with the day-to-day operational issues that confront his airport clients and he brings that experience to the table when working with the airport’s tenants and other service providers to achieve mutually beneficial solutions to operational as well as legal issues.

Representative Experience

  • Serving as outside counsel to large, medium, and small hub airports in negotiation of new use and lease agreements
  • Representing Reno-Tahoe International Airport in negotiation of a new Airline Use and Lease Agreement that will provide for development of two new concourses
  • Working with a European airport operator serving as terminal operator for a newly constructed U.S. terminal to negotiate an Airline Services Agreement among the terminal operator, the airlines operating at the terminal and the airport sponsor, and all agreements for in-terminal concessions
  • Advising two medium hub airports on the development of consolidated rental car facilities and negotiation of related agreements
  • Advising several other U.S. airports on negotiation of new use and lease agreements with the airlines
  • Served as counsel to Tampa International Airport in the negotiation of a new rates and charges ordinance during the COVID-19 pandemic
  • Represented Kansas City International Airport in negotiation of a new use and lease agreement serving as security for new terminal development
  • Worked with Pittsburgh International Airport to negotiate a new airline operating agreement providing for development of a new terminal and ancillary facilities after completion of a 30-year agreement
  • Developed new fuel system lease agreement with an airline fuel consortium for Austin—Bergstrom International Airport
  • Serving as bond counsel for Massachusetts Port Authority, including recent issuances of revenue bonds, subordinated obligations, commercial paper, and special facility revenue bonds for fuel system improvements
  • Serving as disclosure counsel for Salt Lake City International Airport since the commencement of the New SLC project
  • Counseling an airport sponsor on surplus property act matters relating to a Part 16 complaint brought before the FAA
  • Provided regulatory counsel to more than twenty airports of all classes regarding their response to the COVID-19 pandemic
  • Serve as counsel to several airports on compliance with U.S. DOT ACDBE requirements and development of corrective action plans
  • Served as underwriter’s counsel for financings for Milwaukee’s General Mitchell International Airport and Burlington, Vermont, International Airport
  • Negotiated new ground lease between airport sponsor and major MRO provider for development of new facility
  • Assisted several airports in negotiation of new agreements with TNCs

Matters prior to joining Kaplan Kirsch & Rockwell include:

  • Represented a consortium of airports with respect to the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing by American Airlines and its affiliates
  • Successfully led restructuring of lease with Delta that left $500 million of special facilities revenue bonds outstanding during Delta bankruptcy; included negotiations with Delta, bond insurer, and trustee
  • Negotiated new fuel system lease with Northwest Airlines during its bankruptcy proceedings
  • Served as Massport’s bond counsel for initial issuance of CFC-backed bonds to finance new consolidated rental car facility; negotiated new rental car company leases with all nine rental car companies operating at Logan International Airport
  • Served as underwriter’s counsel for financings for Orlando, Milwaukee, and Burlington (VT) airports
  • Submitted comments on amendments to SEC Rule 15c2-12 on behalf of airport trade organization; participated in drafting comments submitted by National Association of Bond Lawyers
  • Counseled Massport on the preparation, and approval by FAA, of applications to impose and use $392 million of passenger facility charges
  • Negotiated new hotel management agreements with major hotel operator on behalf of O’Hare International Airport
  • Served Greater Orlando Aviation Authority as co-bond counsel and developed a new subordinate lien indenture
  • Assisted Jacksonville Airport Authority in the negotiation of a new use and lease agreement; assisted in resolving a dispute with a fixed-base operator culminating in a new lease
  • Served as legal liaison from Massport to the Central Artery/Tunnel (“Big Dig”) project, including structuring acquisition of roadway assets and overseeing transfer
  • Assisted Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport in the negotiation and adoption of an ordinance providing for the terms and conditions, including rates and charges, under which airlines may operate at the airport
  • Negotiated lease as Massport’s counsel with JetBlue at Logan International Airport allowing JetBlue to grow from four gates to operate at all of Terminal C

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