On May 25, Japanese airline Skymark unveiled its first Boeing 737 MAX aircraft (737-8 type, registration: JA738A) at its hangar at Tokyo Haneda Airport. This is the first Boeing 737 MAX to be introduced by a Japanese airline. The inaugural flight is scheduled to be flight SKY003 from Tokyo/Haneda to Fukuoka on May 28.
The aircraft was delivered in Seattle, Washington, USA, where Boeing’s factory is located, on April 29 local time. It departed Seattle on April 30 and arrived at Tokyo Haneda Airport on May 4 after transiting via Kona and Guam.
The aircraft has 177 seats, the same capacity as Skymark’s current Boeing 737-800s, with a seat pitch of approximately 31 inches (about 79 centimeters). Each seatback is equipped with a USB Type-C port and a tablet holder, and there is a universal power outlet under each seat. Skymark also plans to offer in-flight Wi-Fi service in the future.
The aircraft is powered by CFM International LEAP-1B engines, which reduce fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions per seat by about 15 percent compared to the 737-800. The range is extended from 5,440 kilometers to 6,480 kilometers.
While inheriting the basic livery of the 737-800, the new design extends the brand color “SKY BLUE,” which had been applied to the vertical tail, down to the lower part of the fuselage. The winglets feature two red hearts, inspired by the idea of a young employee who wanted “to deliver even more warmth to many more people.”
For the time being, the aircraft will operate on the Tokyo/Haneda–Fukuoka route and will gradually be introduced on other routes as well. The flights operated by the aircraft can be checked on the seat availability screen, where the aircraft type is shown as “738.”
As successor aircraft to its current Boeing 737-800s, Skymark plans to introduce a total of 20 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft: 13 of the 737-8 type and 7 of the stretched 737-10 type. The airline has been preparing for the introduction since 2025, including training on a full-flight simulator (FFS). Of the 737-8 aircraft, 7 will be purchased and 6 will be leased, with the first aircraft being a leased jet. The 737-10 aircraft are scheduled for delivery from fiscal year 2027.
With the introduction of JA738A, Skymark’s operating fleet has reached 30 aircraft. Going forward, the airline plans to introduce the 737-8 and 737-10 while retiring the 737-800s in parallel. It aims to maintain a fleet of 30 aircraft in fiscal years 2026 and 2027, and expand to 33 aircraft in fiscal years 2028 through 2030.
▲Skymark President Manabu Motohashi
Regarding the aim of introducing the 737 MAX, Skymark President Manabu Motohashi explained, “Thanks to the high commonality with our current aircraft, we can significantly reduce training for flight crew and maintenance departments, and smoothly hand over the foundation of safe operations.” He added, “Successfully completing our fleet renewal and putting the company on a trajectory of further growth is the most important mission assigned to us,” expressing his strong commitment to growth.
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This article was generated using automatic translation by GPT-4 API. The translation may not be accurate.
