DUBLIN-BASED aviation leasing business Pembroke Capital reduced its accumulated losses last year to $25 million after returning to profitability and recording turnover growth of 45 per cent.

Accounts just filed in the companies office show that Pembroke recorded a profit of $19 million in the 12 months to the end of December 2007. This compared with a loss of $11 million a year earlier. This enabled the group to trim its accumulated losses from the $44 million level at the end of 2006.

Pembroke's turnover rose to $118 million last year from $81.5 million in 2006.

The aviation leasing group's net debt declined sharply in 2007, reducing by $207 million to $71 million. This followed the disposal of $60 million worth of aircraft and $147 million in cash flow generated during the year.

Pembroke was sold by its Irish owners in October 2007 to Standard Chartered plc. No price was disclosed.

The deal is believed to have made millionaires out of its owners Gary Burke, Peter Moylan and Kieran Corr. The trio earned $3.4 million last year in remuneration, a 33 per cent increase on 2006.

Pembroke employed 20 staff during the period, who earned just over $6 million between them.

The company grew out of GPA, the aircraft leasing group founded by late businessman Tony Ryan that ran into difficulties in the early 1990s. It was backed at one point by financier Dermot Desmond and has numbered Rolls Royce and specialist lender GATX among its shareholders.

According to Pembroke's website, it owns or manages a fleet of 86 aircraft. Its customers include Air France, SAS and Delta Airlines and it operates from offices in Dublin and Limerick.

When contacted by The Irish Times, Pembroke director Kieran Corr declined to comment on the accounts.