Seattle and Mexico City, 5th July 2018: SMBC Aviation Capital, a leading global aircraft leasing company, is today celebrating the delivery of its first Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft MSN 43706. The aircraft has been delivered to Aeromexico as part of a ten aircraft deal on purchase and leaseback, which also includes a PDP facility, previously announced in 2017.

This aircraft is specifically designed for Aeromexico. The aircraft’s cabin interior will feature an overall redesign of seat ergonomics including increased seat widths, an increase of the cocktail table and meal tray areas and the inclusion of an integrated tablet holder. Lighting is also another key focus with new in-seat lighting effects designed to better define passengers’ personal space.

Andrés Conesa, CEO of Aeromexico said “Our goal is to offer a premium passenger experience. This means that the design of our cabin interior must support our ethos of overall passenger well-being by providing our customers with the latest and newest advancements in passenger comfort, not just for our long-haul aircraft but also across our short and medium-haul fleet.

“We are committed to offering a state of the art fleet adding Boeing 737 MAX airliners and Boeing 787 Dreamliners, and this delivery is an important step on that journey. We look forward to continuing to work with SMBC Aviation Capital to achieve our goals.”

Mr Peter Barrett, Chief Executive Officer, SMBC Aviation Capital said, “This is an exciting announcement for SMBC Aviation Capital as it is our first delivery of the new generation Boeing 737 MAX. We continue to invest in new technology aircraft, which now make up 22% of our fleet, meaning that we have one of the youngest fleets in the market with an overall weighted average age of 4.5 years.

“Having a younger, more fuel-efficient fleet will be an increasingly important factor in the years to come as airlines look to renew their fleets in order to improve efficiencies. Aeromexico is one of SMBC Aviation Capital’s longest airline customer relationships and we look forward to continuing to support the company’s fleet renewal plans in the years to come”