Akasa Air Selects CFM’s Advanced and Environmentally Friendly LEAP-1B Engine to Launch Operations in India

Akasa Air announced the purchase of CFM LEAP-1B engines to power its recently announced Boeing 737 MAX airplanes. The agreement that also includes spare engines and long-term services agreement is valued at nearly $4.5bn at list price.

With this purchase and services agreement, Akasa Air will have from day-1 of its operations an innovative and comprehensive maintenance program delivered by CFM, the world’s premier engine manufacturer.

Vinay Dube, CEO, Akasa Air, said, “We are extremely pleased to partner with CFM International as we embark on an exciting journey to launch the greenest, most affordable and most dependable airline in India. Our partnership with CFM will ensure that we adhere to the world’s highest standards of maintenance and deliver the industry’s best technical dispatch reliability.”

Dube further added, “The state-of-the-art, high-performance LEAP-1B engine will support our tech-driven culture by enabling real-time engine monitoring and predictive maintenance planning. With this agreement, we now have the foundation to ensure the most competitive and reliable operations in our fast growing market.”

“We are proud to develop a strong relationship with Akasa and play a key role in the launch of their operations, by providing them with the industry-leading asset utilization, fuel efficiency, and overall cost of ownership,” said Philippe Couteaux, executive vice president of sales and marketing for CFM International. “On behalf of the entire team worldwide, it will be a great honor to help launch this new airline with the industry-leading support and reliability that has become a hallmark of CFM International.”

Since CFM delivered the first CFM56 engines in the early 90’s, the company has been developing a trustful relationship with major Indian Airlines and playing a key role in Indian domestic market continuous growth. To date, nearly 600 engines are operated by airlines from the Indian subcontinent and more than 1,700 LEAP engines are on order.

CFM’s advanced LEAP engine continues to set new industry standards for fuel efficiency and asset utilization, logging more than 12 million engine flight hours in commercial operation. The fleet is providing better fuel consumption and lower CO2 emissions, as well as a significant improvement in noise compared to the best CFM56 engines while maintaining the CFM legendary reliability. The LEAP-1B engine entered into service on the Boeing 737 MAX in 2017. More than 600 aircraft have been delivered to some 66 operators worldwide and the fleet has logged more than 2.5 million engine flight hours.