SKY Leasing Closes Lease with Lion Air Group for the Global Launch of 737 MAX 9

Dublin, Ireland – March 21, 2018 – SKY Leasing (SKY), a full-service aircraft leasing company headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, and the Lion Air Group, one of Boeing’s largest airline customers and operators, marked a new era of air travel today with the delivery of the first-ever Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft.

The aircraft has been specifically designed to offer operators exceptional performance, flexibility efficiency, while providing the lowest per-seat costs of any next generation aircraft. The MAX 9 will be equipped with LEAP-1B engines solely sourced from CFM International. These new technology engines are designed to reduce fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by 15% in comparison to current generation engines, cut in NOx emissions by 50%, and comply with the most stringent noise standards (the ICAO's Chapter 14 regulations). In addition to the improved economics, the 737 MAX 9 enables airlines to reach farther than previous models with the added benefit of carrying up to 220 passengers over 3,550 nautical miles.

“The delivery of the first global MAX 9 is an important aircraft for SKY Leasing as we continue to add to our fleet, which is one of the youngest in the industry,” said Rich Wiley, CEO of SKY Leasing. “SKY focuses our investment philosophy on building a best-in-class portfolio of young aircraft that are core assets to our airline customers.”

“We are delighted to partner with SKY Leasing to take the delivery of the world’s first Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft. ThaiLion now flies to 44 destinations and we believe that the Boeing 737 MAX 9 will support ThaiLion with the freedom to fly to further destinations at a cheaper fare for our customers” said Aswin Yangkirativorn, CEO of ThaiLion.

Edward Sirait, CEO of Lion Group said, “We are proud to be Boeing’s launch customer for the Boeing 737 MAX 9. The Boeing 737NG fleet has supported Lion Group’s growth and expansion of network.”

“We are delighted to deliver this aircraft to The Lion Air Group, marking a significant milestone for SKY Leasing as we continue to partner with our long-term customer,” said Steve Patch, EVP and Head of Marketing for SKY Leasing.