Lessor Azorra has concluded another Embraer lease deal, the third in one week. At the LIMA’23 airshow in Malaysia, it signed an agreement for ten E195-E2s with regional airline SKS Airways. The first aircraft will be delivered in 2024. Azorra concludes another Embraer E2-deal.
SKS Airways, which is part of SKS Group, is a small regional carrier that was founded in 2017 but launched operations only in 2022. It currently operates a fleet of De Havilland Canada Dash 6-300 Twin Otters, so the selection of the E195-E2 is a step-change for them. The E2s will be configured with 136 seats.
The aircraft will be based at Kuala Lumpur’s city airport Subang, from where the airline plans to build a regional network in the coming years. In February, Subang Airport has been selected to be developed into a premium city airport with regional connections.
“With these strategic partnerships, we are excited to embark on a new phase of growth, with a fleet of Embraer’s Jets operating out of Subang,” said SKS Airways Director, Dato’ Rohman Ahmad in a media statement. “The prevalence of the E-Jets at city airports around the world and the low noise emissions of the E195-E2 makes the aircraft a perfect fit for flights in and out of Subang Airport – supporting the Government’s aim to establish Subang Airport as Malaysia’s premium city airport and aviation hub.”
For Azorra and Embraer, SKS Airways means a welcome new customer in Southeast Asia. “We are pleased to partner with SKS Airways on this unique opportunity to be a part of the future expansion of Subang Airport. We believe Embraer’s new technology E2 is the perfect fit for a redeveloped, premier aviation hub near the heart of Kuala Lumpur, reducing travel times and improving connectivity in the region,” Azorra-CEO John Evans said.
Azorra has placed 28 E2s with airlines
Earlier this week, Azorra concluded the final agreement with Singapore Airlines’ subsidiary Scoot for the lease of nine E190-E2s. Last week, Royal Jordanian confirmed its MoU for four E190-E2s and two E195-E2s with the lessor while also purchasing two E195-E2s directly from Embraer.
In December, Azorra signed a lease agreement with Madagascar Airlines for three E190-E2s. It also concluded sale and leasebacks for five E195-E2s that were purchased by Porter Airlines. In January 2022, Azorra signed a firm order for twenty aircraft plus purchase rights for another thirty, with the flexibility to select the E190-E2 or E195-E2.
So if we haven’t overlooked other agreements, Azorra will now have placed 28 E2s from its order book with five airlines, excluding the SLBs with Porter.
Active as a journalist since 1987, with a background in newspapers, magazines, and a regional news station, Richard has been covering commercial aviation on a freelance basis since late 2016.
In 2022, he has gone full-time freelance. Richard has been contributing to AirInsight since December 2018. He is also writing for Airliner World and Aviation News. From January 2023, he will add a part-time role with Dutch website and magazine Luchtvaartnieuws. Twitter: @rschuur_aero.
