SINGAPORE—China Eastern Airlines’ newly restructured MRO unit, China Eastern Aircraft Maintenance Engineering (Shanghai), has commissioned what it says is Asia’s largest widebody aircraft maintenance hangar as it positions itself to capture growing regional aftermarket demand.
Located in the Lingang New Area Industrial Park, the 46,000-m2 (500,000-ft.2) facility measures 313 m (1,000 ft.) wide and 146 m deep. It can accommodate up to nine widebody and two narrowbody aircraft simultaneously.
The hangar is connected to Shanghai Pudong International Airport (PVG) and is located near a growing domestic and international aerospace industry cluster, including Comac's aircraft final assembly facilities.
China Eastern Aircraft Maintenance Engineering already provides heavy maintenance for Boeing, Airbus and Comac aircraft, as well as passenger-to-freighter conversions of the Airbus A330 and lease-return inspections.
The company plans to further expand the facility to support 10 widebody maintenance lines, two narrowbody lines and a dedicated aircraft painting line. It aims to increase annual productivity to 2 million work hours over the next five years.
The facility gives China Eastern an expanded base from which to pursue third-party MRO work while supporting the airline’s own growing fleet and aircraft maintenance requirements.
Related Content
