Qingdao Airlines Places $100 million order with CFM

Qingdao Airlines has selected CFM International’s CFM56-5B engine to power five purchased Airbus A320ceo aircraft. The order is valued at $100 million U.S. at list price. The airplane order was announced in September 2013 and the airline will begin taking delivery later this year.

To support its fleet, the airline has also signed a 12-year Materials Services Agreement.

“We are very pleased to expand our relationship with Qingdao Airlines. This airline has accomplished a great deal in the two years it has been operational and we are excited to be part of this dynamic team” said Jean-Paul Ebanga, president and CEO of CFM International.

Qingdao Airlines, which is owned by Nanshan Group, is based in the Eastern Chinese coastal city of Qingdao, Shandong Province. The airline took delivery of its first leased A320ceo powered by CFM56 engines in April 2014 and currently operates a fleet of nine aircraft on routes to five destinations throughout China. .

The CFM56-5B is the engine of choice for the Airbus A320ceo (current engine option) family and is popular with major airlines, low-cost carriers, and leasing companies alike, having been selected to power 55 percent of all aircraft currently in service or on order. Almost 7,200 CFM56-5B engines have been delivered to date to operators around the globe. Primary factors behind the engine’s broad-based market acceptance include this industry’s best reliability, durability, low cost of ownership, and world-class customer and product support.