Gallery: Aftermarket Action in Europe

Lufthansa Technik (LHT) recently signed contracts that will expand its partnerships in engines and avionics. It extended its engine services collaboration with Russian carrier Rossiya Airlines by contracting additional engine shop visits. LHT will now overhaul four CFM56-5B engines at its Hamburg shop until mid-2022.

It also signed a long-term repair maintenance service agreement with Thales for avionics equipment maintenance services. The long-term agreement, which includes a spares purchase to support LHT’s inventory, will support a major Airbus fleet.

Thales recently signed an avionics maintenance services agreement with AJW Group that includes Repair By The Hour for the Airbus A320CEO, A320NEO and A330 fleets of what it says are major European airlines. Thales will mainly support AJW from its repair shop in Chatellerault, France. It will also provide support to AJW Technique at its component MRO facility in Montreal.

AJW Group completed its buyout of Avia Components Services to establish a European in-house MRO facility in early September. The new MRO, called AJW Technique Europe, is based near London Gatwick Airport. It will begin with a specialization in battery repair, including deep cycle, top charge, cleaning, re-blocking, regular service, overhaul, test and certification for all commercial aircraft main, auxiliary and emergency power supplies.

Avia Solutions Group subsidiary Jet MS received a UK Civil Aviation Authority Maintenance Organization Approval Certificate in early September to conduct base and line MRO services on Embraer EMB 135/145 aircraft. The Lithuanian maintenance provider says the new approval will give it capability to carry out regional aviation maintenance services on UK-registered aircraft from under one centralized location to meet the needs of its new and potential customers in the UK market.

U.S.-based MRO FEAM recently branched into Europe with its purchase of UK line maintenance provider BOSA. Headquartered in Manchester, BOSA provides line maintenance in the UK and Germany as well as component repair and AOG services. According to FEAM president Cam Murphy, the acquisition will position FEAM well for recovery in the UK and European markets.

Amsterdam-based KLM subsidiary KLM Cityhopper announced a new technical services partnership with Swiss regional airline Helvetic Airways in early September. Under the partnership, it can now perform work on Helvetic’s Embraer E-Jet fleet as and when required at its Zurich base. While the partnership initially covers the on-call provision of maintenance services for Helvetic’s E-Jet E1 and E2 fleet, KLM Cityhopper says subsequent expansion of the agreement has not been ruled out.

Russian MRO provider S7 Technics recently announced plans to set up a new overhaul shop for CFM56 engines and Honeywell auxiliary power units at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo International Airport. The overhaul work will be performed under EASA and FAA certificates and the shop is scheduled to become operational in the first quarter of 2022.

S7 Technics also recently signed a letter of intent with United Engine Corporation (UEC) to test overhauled CFM56 engines in Russia using a UEC-provided test cell in Rybinsk. It says the agreement will minimize repair time, since it will no longer require S7 Technics to ship engines for testing to Germany or Switzerland.

New Icelandic low-cost carrier PLAY has chosen OEMServices to provide component support for its Airbus A321 fleet. OEMServices will support inventory availability, component repair support by flight hour, engineering services and associated logistics for PLAY, which launched flights in June. The airline currently operates three A321neo aircraft and plans to operate more than 15 aircraft by 2025 while servicing destinations in Europe and North America.

Spanish low-cost carrier Volotea has extended its Airbus A320 family power-by-the-hour component support contract with AAR, which first began in 2016. Under the agreement, Volotea will have Main Base Kits positioned at its operating bases throughout Europe, access to AAR’s component pool inventory from logistics centers in Europe and support from AAR in managing the component repair cycle.

Spanish carrier Air Europa has been granted FAA repair station approval to carry out repairs and periodic maintenance checks on U.S.-registered aircraft from its bases in Madrid and Barcelona. Under the new approval, Air Europa can undertake periodic, transit and weekly revisions and inspections, as well as the rectification of defects found on aircraft. It says it may consider expanding some maintenance services based on future customer needs.

Switzerland-based Chair Airlines—the successor to Germania Flug AG in Switzerland—has switched line maintenance providers. Danish MRO Northern Aerotech will now handle full line maintenance services for Chair’s fleet at Zurich Airport starting in November. SR Technics previously handled line maintenance for Chair since its launch in 2019, as well as for Germania Flug AG in Switzerland. According to Chair, Northern Aerotech will be able to understand and flexibly adapt to its maintenance needs as a smaller MRO.

Regional aircraft lessor Nordic Aviation Capital (NAC) has signed a general terms agreement with Polish MRO ALL4JETS to extend continuing airworthiness management organization (CAMO) services. ALL4JETS has been providing CAMO services to NAC since 2016, including aircraft redelivery and annual/mid leased aircraft inspections, maintenance services after repossessions and training services in different parts of the world.

Magnetic MRO signed a consignment stock agreement with MRO supplier Avioparts in mid-September covering the supply of ATR tires. It says the agreement will enable its MRO Wheels and Brakes workshop to minimize turnaround time and improve efficiency.

Magnetic MRO’s subsidiary Direct Maintenance also recently announced plans to open two new line maintenance stations at Frankfurt and Munich airports in Germany. The stations will provide line maintenance services for a variety of Airbus and Boeing aircraft.

SR Technics Malta signed a chemical consignment agreement in mid-September with Aerospheres UK, a distributor of aviation-related chemicals for commercial airline and MRO operations. The partnership covers storage and supply of Aerospheres’ paints, adhesives, sealants, cleaners and lubricants at the SR Technics Malta facility. SR Technics says there is an average ten-day period from the purchase of hazardous materials in the UK to incoming goods inspection and delivery in Malta, so the ability to have inventory on-site will allow Aerospheres to provide almost same-day delivery while saving on inventory holding costs.

EirTrade Aviation was recently appointed as an agent to broker the sale of Irish regional airline Stobart Air’s inventories, following its collapse in June 2021. EirTrade says it intends to package the inventories—which include ground support equipment, expendables, consumables and tooling for ATR and Embraer aircraft—into several large lots that will be offered to the market.

Liebherr-Aerospace just signed agreements with two new airlines, airBaltic and SWISS, to expand cooperation on its Artic data analytics platform for health management. The airlines will use Liebherr’s predictive maintenance algorithms and other trend monitoring applications to optimize maintenance operations.