SriLankan Airlines (UL, Colombo International) has issued a Request for Proposals for the six-year dry-lease of a single A320-200 or A321-200.
The aircraft has to be 15 years of age or younger at the moment of delivery, which is tentatively expected in December 2023. SriLankan is also open to bids from its current lessors to extend the contracts on their existing aircraft by another six years.
The carrier is soliciting bids with either CFM International or International Aero Engines engines. The aircraft should be configured (already or pre-delivery) in a two-class layout with inflight entertainment deemed "advantageous". It did not specify the exact number of passenger seats to be installed.
SriLankan Airlines said that if it were to go with the A320, it would expect to use it for 3,850 flight hours and 1,600 flight cycles per aircraft per year. The A321 would operate around 4,250 flight hours and 1,500 flight cycles per aircraft per year. The carrier expects bids for aircraft fresh out of C-Checks and free of any scheduled major maintenance events for the next 12,000 flight hours, 8,000 flight cycles, and 36 months.
The ch-aviation fleets module shows the carrier's current narrowbody fleet comprises:
- five A320-200s on lease from Air Lease Corporation (two), AerCap, Aircastle, and First Star Aviation (one each) - including three units which are estimated to expire in 2023,
- two A320-200Ns on lease from Air Lease Corporation,
- one A321-200 on lease from Park Aerospace Holdings/Avolon,
- four A321-200Ns on lease from AerCap and Air Lease Corporation (two each).
The financially ailing state-owned carrier issued another RFP for five second-hand A320 Family aircraft and five second-hand A330 Family aircraft in December 2022.
