LANGKAWI: Malindo Air will be the first commercial air carrier to fly Boeing’s latest version of the 737 aircraft, the B737 MAX.
The airline has ordered four Boeing 737 MAXs to join its fleet come May.
It is expected that Malindo Air will utilise the B737 MAX for its Singapore-Kuala Lumpur route first before expanding to include flights to Bangkok’s Don Mueang International Airport and other locations in the region.
Malindo Air chief executive officer Chandran Rama Muthy said the Lion Air Group has ordered eight 737 MAX from Boeing, where the other four is to be operated by the Indonesian Lion Air.
“Malindo Air is very proud to announce that we will be the world’s first carrier to fly passengers on this state-of-the-art innovation.
“The 737 MAX was chosen as its features are almost the same with the B737 that we have in our fleet today with the exception of its new engines, which gives better fuel savings of up to 14 per cent.
“The same features and system makes it easier for us to maintain and operate the new aircrafts, where our pilots only need one session of simulator training to fly the B737 MAX,” he said at a press conference during the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition 2017 (Lima 2017) at the Mahsuri International Exhibition Centre, here today.
Chandran said this after signing a memorandum of understanding with Boeing.
Also present during the press conference were Lion Air Group founder Rusdi Kirana and Boeing senior vice-president of sales (Asia Pacific and India) Dr Dinesh Keskar.