Vietjet, CFM sign Rate per Flight Hour Agreement of the first 21 Airbus A320ceo for CFM56-5B fleet

Supports airline’s entire CFM56-5B fleet.

PARIS, France — 24 November 2014 — Vietnam's Vietjet and CFM International today signed a 12-year Rate Per Flight Hour agreement to support the airline’s Airbus 320 ceo fleet of 21 aircraft of CFM56-5B engines. The signing ceremony also welcomed Deputy Minister of Transport of Vietnam Mr. Pham Quy Tieu, Vietnam Ambassador in France Mr. Duong Chi Dung, and leaders of Vietjet and CFM.

Mr. Luu Duc Khanh - Managing Director of Vietjet and Mr. Gaël Meheust, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for CFM parent company Snecma (Safran) have signed the agreement, which was witnessed by Mr. Pham Quy Tieu – Deputy Minister of Transport of Vietnam and Mr. Duong Chi Dung – Vietnam Ambassador in France.

Under the terms of the agreement, which is valued at US$300 million, CFM will guarantee maintenance costs for a total of 45 CFM56-5B engines on a dollar per engine flight hour basis and provide some spare engines for free.

Based in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietjet has been a CFM customer since it commenced operations in late 2011 with leased 18 CFM56-5B-powered A320 aircraft. Earlier this year, the airline placed an $800 million order to purchase CFM56-5B engines to power 14 additional Airbus A320ceo (current engine option) and 7 A321ceo aircraft. As a result, the airline’s fleet of CFM56-5B engines is up to 39. Vietjet will take delivery of its first purchased aircraft earlier tomorrow.

"With this agreement, we are looking to CFM to help us keep our maintenance costs in check,” said Mr Luu Duc Khanh – Managing Director of Vietjet. "They have proven themselves to be a real partner in our operations and will continue to be an asset to support our continued growth.”

Mr. Luu Duc Khanh was delivering his speech

“We are very happy to bring all of our expertise to Vietjet and help them keep their operating costs low,” said Gaël Meheust, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for CFM parent company Snecma (Safran). “This airline has accomplished a great deal in a short amount of time and we are thrilled to be such an integral part of their team.”

Mr. Gaël Meheust was congratulating the partnership.

All of Vietjet's new engines will be the CFM56-5B Performance Improvement Package (PIP) configuration. The PIP became the new production configuration for the CFM56-5B in 2011. The improvements, which is providing a 0.5% improvement in fuel burn, include hardware changes to the core, including new high-pressure turbine blade, as well as manufacturing changes the fan and compressor blades and vanes to improve performance retention. The engine maintains the same noise signature as the current production engine and meets current International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Committee of Aviation Environmental Protection standards (CAEP /6) requirements.