As executive editor of MRO and business aviation, Lee Ann Shay directs Aviation Week's coverage of maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO), including Inside MRO, and business aviation, including BCA.
She won the World Leadership Forum’s Aerospace Journalist of the Year Awards in 2009 (propulsion category) and in 2002 (maintenance category), and has been a finalist in other years. In 2017, Lee Ann won the Aerospace Media Awards' Best Future Tech submission.
She holds a B.A. in English and political science from Luther College and an M.A. in nonfiction writing from Johns Hopkins University.
The Aero Gulf Group is confident it will make money overhauling engines in Norway, even though Pratt & Whitney incurred losses there. At first glance, it might seem curious that the Bahrain-based helicopter operator purchased the CFM56 propulsion shop in Stavanger from Pratt & Whitney in August 2013—especially because the Middle Eastern company is not an engine expert. Pratt & Whitney had purchased the facility from Braathens ASA in 2000 to add CFM56-3 and -7 capabilities and expand its international network.
United Airlines opened a third widebody hangar at Newark Liberty International Airport that provides greater configuration capabilities for the line maintenance operation. The 90,000-sq.-ft. hangar can accommodate a Boeing 747-400 or a 767 and midbody such as the 737-900ER. Having this $35 million hangar also provides broader maintenance flexibility since certain functions, such as borescope testing, should be done indoors.
The jet and turboprop MRO market will grow to $65.1 billion in the next five years from the projected $56.3 billion in 2014, even while the compound annual growth rate of airframe heavy maintenance labor hours drops by 0.4% during the period, according to Aviation Week’s civil aviation fleet and MRO forecast. Factors driving this trend include MRO providers adopting continuous improvements to increase efficiency, escalating material and engine repair costs, and new aircraft deliveries continuing at a torrid pace through 2018.
