Japan’s StarFlyer Invests To Ensure Stable Leap Operations

Japanese carrier StarFlyer has flagged an “increasing need” to prepare for scheduled and unscheduled maintenance of new-generation engines, to which end it has signed a long-term lease for one CFM Leap powerplant.

The Airbus A320-family operator said that scheduled events like lease returns and engine part replacements, plus unexpected engine problems, had prompted it to source the cover of a Leap-1A spare engine, although none of its four A320neos is much older than three years. StarFlyer operates those new-generation airliners alongside seven prior-generation A320s, according to the Aviation Week Fleet Discovery database.

Engine Lease Finance Corporation (ELFC), which is owned by Japanese firm Mitsubishi HC Capital, will lease the turbofan to the airline for 10 years starting December 2027.

“The global supply-demand imbalance for engines makes it difficult to procure replacement engines on short notice,” StarFlyer says. “To address these circumstances and maintain stable flight operations, we have decided to procure one spare engine via a lease arrangement, as we require such an engine for at least the next 10 years.”

StarFlyer expects to pay around $21 million in lease fees over the course of the spare engine contract with ELFC, adding that such an investment was necessary to ensure stable operations in the medium- to long-term.

Aviation Week recently reported that airlines’ spare engine planning is being complicated by unpredictable maintenance turnaround times, while OEMs are sometimes struggling to meet contractual requirements for spare engine provision under their own maintenance programs.

StarFlyer’s Leap engine maintenance is provided by Lufthansa Technik under a long-term deal signed in 2023 for the support of StarFlyer’s CFM56 and Leap engines, according to which the German MRO will offer overhauls, basic inspections, boroscopy, AOG support, on-wing troubleshooting, engine condition monitoring and engine parts repair.

In 2024, meanwhile, the airline agreed to lease up to five additional A320neos from ANA Holdings with deliveries scheduled to begin in October this year. At the time, StarFlyer said each 12-year lease of an A320neo would cost around $100 million.