an important contributor to our long-term growth plans.”
Second Quarter 2021 Results of Operations
For the second quarter of 2021, AerSale reported revenue of $91.9 million, which included $42.7 million of flight equipment sales consisting of three aircraft, one airframe, and two engines. Revenue in the second quarter of 2020 was $45.4 million, including $3.1 million of flight equipment sales. As a reminder to investors, flight equipment sales are volatile quarter to quarter, and the Company believes full-year analysis, rather than year-over-year quarterly comparisons is a more effective measurement of Company progress.
Asset Management Solutions (AMS) revenue increased by $39.4 million or 189% in the second quarter of 2021 largely due to flight equipment sales mentioned above. The consumption of used serviceable material (USM) parts for maintenance and overhaul activity rose as air travel picked up and airlines returned aircraft into operation. The increase was partially offset by lower leasing volume as three passenger B747 leases ended as scheduled at the end of 2020.
Revenue from TechOps was up 29.0% to $31.6 million in the second quarter of 2021, primarily driven by storage, maintenance, rehabilitation, and recommissioning of aircraft at the Company’s aircraft MRO facilities. Looking forward, AerSale expects the substantial quantity of aircraft at its on-airport MRO facilities to provide the Company with upside opportunities for reactivation work, heavy maintenance, and cargo conversion; and a strategic advantage in identifying feedstock for its Asset Management Solutions segment.
Gross margin expanded to 33.4% in the second quarter of 2021 compared to (4.7%) in the second quarter of 2020. The improvement was due to the high-margin sale of flight equipment after channeling these assets through AerSale’s unique multi-dimensional redistribution machinery and lower inventory impairments during the quarter.
Selling, general and administrative expenses, net of the payroll support program proceeds, were $8.6 million in the second quarter of 2021 compared to $7.7 million in the second quarter of 2020. The uptick in payroll and public company expenses fully offset the contribution from the Payroll Support Program. The Payroll Support Program proceeds were $8.4 million versus $6.3 million in the second quarter of 2020.
Income from operations was $22.2 million in the second quarter of 2021 versus a loss from operations of $9.8 million in the second quarter of 2020.
The provision for income tax was $5.1 million in the second quarter of 2021 compared to a benefit of $2.3 million in the second quarter of 2020.
GAAP net income for the second quarter of 2021 was $16.5 million or 18.0% of sales versus a net loss of $7.9 million in the second quarter of 2020.
Diluted earnings per share was $0.38 for the second quarter of 2021. Diluted earnings per share for the second quarter of 2021 is not comparable to the second quarter of 2020 due to the public listing of AerSale on December 23, 2020.
Adjusted EBITDA for the second quarter of 2021 was $30.4 million, or 33.1% of revenue, compared to adjusted EBITDA of $12.9 million, or 28.4% of revenue, in the second quarter of 2020. The improvement in adjusted EBITDA was due to the high-margin sale of flight equipment and aircraft storage and related maintenance activities and lower inventory impairments, which was partially offset by lower leasing revenues during the period.
2021 Guidance
AerSale anticipates revenue of $340–$360 million and adjusted EBITDA of $60-$70 million in 2021. This outlook is based on an improvement in activity in the Company’s AMS segment, strong demand for its on-airport MRO services accelerating demand in cargo and E-Commerce markets, and increased requests for passenger-to-freighter conversions and other TechOps products and services.