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K5 Aviation Selects CFM LEAP-1A to Power ACJ319NEO Aircraft

June 20, 2017

LE BOURGET, France — At a special ceremony here today, K5 Aviation GmbH of Germany finalized an order with CFM International for the advanced LEAP-1A engine to power the new Airbus ACJ319neo aircraft ordered in 2015 and scheduled for delivery in the second quarter of 2019.  The engine order is valued at $29 million U.S. at list price.

K5 Aviation was the launch customer for the ACJ319neo.  The company already manages three ACJ319s powered by CFM56-5B engines that are offered for VVIP charter. 28 East, owned by K5, managed the aircraft acquisition.  The new aircraft will be equipped with additional fuel tanks to allow K5 to operate the aircraft on very long, non-stop routes.

“We have had great success with our CFM56-5B engines, so partnering with CFM again was the natural choice,” says K5 Aviation CEO Erik Scheidt.  “We are certainly delighted by what we have seen the LEAP-1A engine provide in commercial airlines service and know that it will be a tremendous asset to our operations.”

“We have had a great relationship with K5 as a CFM56-5B customer and are obviously delighted that they have chosen to stay with CFM for their new ACJ319neo,” said Gaël Méheust, president and CEO of CFM International.

The LEAP-1A engine entered commercial service in August 2016 and is providing its 14 operators with a 15 percent improvement in fuel efficiency, with an equivalent reduction in CO2 emissions; and lower noise and NOx emissions.  To date, the fleet in service has logged more than 77,000 engine flight cycles and more than 145,000 engine flight hours while maintaining CFM’s industry-leading reliability.

About K5 Aviation

K5-Aviation was founded in 2010 in Germany by four experienced aviation experts. K5-Aviation is known in the market to challenge the industry’s standards; therefore K5-Aviation develops with its partners new groundbreaking solutions for the business aviation sector. It currently operates three Airbus ACJ319 and two Bombardier Global Express aircraft worldwide with one more ACJ319neo and one Global 7000 on order for delivery in 2019. All employees of K5-Aviation have several years of professional experience in aviation and have worked for AOC holders operating 20 VIP aircraft and more. They all felt the need to offer a return to quality of operation rather than quantity. The license to operate aircraft commercially (Aircraft Operating Certicate – AOC) was issued by the German Aviation Authority in June 2011, and shortly after, K5-Aviation obtained approval for low visibility operations up to the highest Category IIIb without decision height and ETOPS 180 for Long Range Operation 180 minutes away from any suitable airport.

About CFM International

The LEAP engine is a product of CFM International, a 50/50 joint company between GE and Safran Aircraft Engines.  This engine has experienced the fastest order ramp up in commercial aviation history and CFM has received orders and commitments for a total of more than 12,500 LEAP engines across all three models through April 2017.