Ferrovial’s consortium led takeover of BAA in 2006 was substantially funded by a large leveraged financing. Clifford Chance represented the banks throughout the takeover and innovative plans to refinance a large portion of the debt by securitising the operating cashflows of Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted Airports in the capital markets. However, a wave of bad news for the industry, and the credit crunch demanded a radical rethink.