The contract focuses on the purchase of Pratt & Whitney’s 44 PurePower Geared Turbofan (GTF) engines and support services for Vietnam Airlines’ 20 Airbus A321NEO aircraft in accompany with comprehensive terms of warranty, maintenance and repair of the engines. The two parties also signed a memorandum of understanding on maintenance contracts for these engines.
The signing ceremony was held as part of President Trump’s official state visit to Vietnam.
Vietnam Airlines President and CEO Duong Tri Thanh said the signing ceremony marked a new development of Vietnam Airlines' A321 fleet, adding that he believes these pacts will contribute to reinforcing Vietnam-US economic and trade ties.
Rick Deurloo, senior vice president of sales, marketing and customer support at Pratt & Whitney, said his company has been powering Vietnam Airlines since the early 1990s, and is looking forward to reinforcing the partnership.
Since its first operation in 2016, the GTF engine has shown a strong performance compared to the current engine, with the reduction of 16 percent in fuel consumption, 50 percent in emission and 75 percent in noise.
Vietnam Airlines expects to receive 20 A321NEO airplanes, equipped with GTF engines, in 2018 and 2019.
The same day, budget carrier VietJet Air said it has secured a US$600 million deal with Pratt & Whitney on the purchase of GTF engine to power its ten new airplanes.
The deal also includes a 12-year EngineWise™ Fleet Management Programme.
Dinh Viet Phuong, vice president of VietJet Air, said the airline is delighted to add the GTF-powered aircraft to its fleet with high hope on the engine’s efficient performance and environmental benefits.
Since its debut in early 2016, the GTF engine has proven its capacity to reduce fuel burn by 16%, emissions by 50% and noise footprint by 75%.
