The latest aircraft order news out of Boeing comes from Japan. Skymark Airlines announces it has places and order for a number of 737 MAX aircraft. Let’s look deeper into the news and the details of this order.
The Details of The Skymark Airlines Boeing 737 MAX Order
For those not accustomed with the Japanese aviation market, Skymark Airlines is a low cost carrier and currently the third largest carrier in the country. Trailing behind only ANA and JAL.
The Skymark Airlines 737 MAX order’s details are as follows:
- 4 airplanes including both the 737-8 and 737-10 will be purchased by the airline.
- Skymark Airline has an option to purchase additional 2 aircrafts of the type.
- 6 737-8s will be added to the fleet on a dry lease agreement with a leasing company.
That bring the potential grand total of new planes the airline can include in its fleet to 12 units.
Modernising the Fleet
In its infancy the airline operated 2 different aircraft types in 3 variants. Specifically the:
- Airbus A330-300
- Boeing 767-200
- Boeing 767-300
As many low cost airlines have done, particularly since the early 2000s, also Skymark Airlines opted for transitioning to a 1 aircraft type fleet. The aircraft of choice was the Boeing 737 in it’s 800 variant.
These planes are gradually ageing and it is time for the Japanese carrier to think about its fleet’s future, hence the order of the new 737 MAXs. These new airliners will replace the ageing 737-800 which currently have an average age of 10 years.
Not only the newer 737 MAXs will allow to save a considerable amount in fuel costs thanks to their new generations LEAP-1B CFM engines. Possibly the new planes might also allow to increase capacity on some strategic routes. At the moment the 737-800s have a capacity of 177 passengers, and in Europe we’ve seen Ryanair reach capacities in excess of 200 passengers with the new MAX variants.
