MRO Industry Rolling Daily Updates (August 2024)

August 30, 2024

Engine Yearbook 2025

Aviation Week is compiling the Engine Yearbook 2025 directory listings, comprising engine MROs, airline maintenance divisions, engine manufacturers and for the first time, engine lessors. To inquire about a free listing, please contact [email protected].

AerFin Grows Engine MRO Lite Maintenance Capabilities

AerFin has added further capabilities to its Engine MRO Lite Maintenance services related to CMF56-5B and CFM56-7B engines. The UK-based company is now offering low pressure turbine module changes, No.4 and No.5 bearings and expanded coverage of fan, booster, and top case activities.

August 29, 2024

Norbert Marx Takes On CASL CEO Role

Norbert Marx has been appointed CEO of China Aircraft Services Limited (CASL). Marx had previously retired in 2022 after serving as CEO and general manager of Guangzhou Aircraft Maintenance Engineering for more than 11 years. His career in aviation spans several decades, including leadership roles at CHC Helicopter/Heli-One, Jet Aviation AG, Lufthansa Technik, AMECO Beijing and Lufthansa. Marx also received a Lifetime Achievement Award from Aviation Week Network during last year’s MRO Asia-Pacific event.

UK MRO Provider Achieves EASA Boeing 737 Approval

UK-based BCT Aviation Maintenance has gained European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) approval for the expansion of its base maintenance services to include C checks for Boeing 737 aircraft. The EASA approval allows the MRO provider to conduct multiple services on the aircraft from its hangar at East Midlands Airport near Derby.

August 28, 2024

New Saudia Technic CEO

Saudia Technic has appointed Abdulkhaliq Saeed as its new CEO. Saeed was most recently CEO of Etihad Airways Engineering and has nearly 40 years of experience in the MRO sector, including serving as president of Abu Dhabi Aircraft Technologies, senior vice president of engineering and maintenance at Jet Airways, and vice president of technical affairs at Gulf Air. He succeeds Fahd H. Cynndy, who is transitioning to the role of managing director at Saudia Technic.

Quality Aircraft Accessories Gets EASA Part 145 Certification

Fort Lauderdale, Florida-based MRO provider Quality Aircraft Accessories has received European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) Part 145 certification. The company’s facility, near Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport, focuses on general aviation accessories such as magnetos and exhaust systems.

August 27, 2024

Gulf Air Completes EASA Maintenance Audit

Gulf Air has completed the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) audit process authorizing it to perform maintenance on its Airbus A320 and Boeing 787 fleet. It says the certification enables it to expand its maintenance capabilities to include a broader range of regional and European airlines operating through Bahrain International Airport.

EVA Air Selects AeroSHARK Modification

EVA Air is the first Asian airline to opt for Lufthansa Technik’s drag-reducing AeroSHARK modification. The airline will equip its entire Boeing 777F cargo fleet with AeroSHARK, and the first freighter has already received the modification at its home base at Taipei Taoyuan International Airport.

August 23, 2024

SmartLynx Selects eCabinLog8 Platform

SmartLynx Airlines has deployed Conduce’s eCabinLog8 platform to digitalize its cabin issue reporting process. The platform enables its crews to report cabin defects, which it says will streamline processes and minimize disruptions.

StandardAero Lands U.S. Navy Engine Contract

The U.S. Navy has selected StandardAero to provide engine MRO services for Rolls-Royce T56-A-427A engines powering its fleet of Northrop Grumman E-2D Advanced Hawkeye aircraft. The more than $300 million contract, which designates StandardAero as the Navy’s depot-level repair prime contractor, is inclusive of the current base year and includes four option years.

August 22, 2024

GAMECO Family Day

Guangzhou Aircraft Maintenance Engineering Co. (GAMECO) help an employee family day, which included a scholarship award ceremony, at its facilities on Aug. 16. “’GAMECO Employee Family Open Day' and 'GAMECO Employee Children's Scholarship Award Ceremony' are two of the company's key highlights every year. We are immensely grateful to be able to say thank you to our employees' family members for their support and sacrifice and to recognize the impressive academic achievements of our employees' children,” says Marc Szepan, the company’s general manager.

(Image credit: GAMECO)

ACMI Revenue Up

Aviation Solutions Group, a Dublin-based ACMI provider that operates 214 aircraft, reported €1.2 billion (US$1.6 billion) in revenue for the first half of the year. This represents a 29% increase year over year. Its fleet is divided between 174 passenger aircraft and 40 freighters.

August 21, 2024

HAECO Launches Gansu Sustainability Initiative

HAECO has created a tree plantation in Gansu Province, China in partnership with the Gansu QingSuo Philanthropy Development Center as part of its sustainability efforts. HAECO Engine Services Xiamen donated 5,000 drought-resistant sacsaoul trees which will act as an ecological barrier against desertification in the region.

August 20, 2024

Aeroflot Technics Opens Novosibirsk Line Station

Aeroflot Technics has opened its 18th line maintenance station in Russia at Novosibirsk Tolmachevo Airport. The station will provide maintenance for Airbus A320, A330, Boeing 737NG and 777 aircraft.

Austrian Plans 777 AeroSHARK Mods

Austrian Airlines will be modifying four of its Boeing 777-200ERs with Lufthansa Technik’s AeroSHARK surface film starting in December. The friction-reducing product is expected to save the airline around 2,650 metric tons of fuel and more than 8,300 metric tons of CO2. So far, 17 Lufthansa Group aircraft have been fitted with AeroSHARK.

August 19, 2024

Batam Enters CFM56 Module Replacement Partnership

Indonesian MRO Batam Aero Technic will undertake CFM56 module replacements for FTAI Aviation and its partner Vortex Aviation. Under the terms of the partnership, Batam will provide the support and facilities for replacing the engine's low-pressure turbine case module and fan booster. One of the first customers was Indian airline SpiceJet. Recently, a SpiceJet operated 737-900ER aircraft underwent module replacements on its CFM56 module replacements in around two weeks.

Mammoth Hits 777 P2F Conversion Milestone

Mammoth Freighters has completed the door-cutting on AviaAM Leasing's first Boeing 777-300ER aircraft. Dublin-headquartered AviaAM Leasing is the launch customer for Mammoth Freighter's 777-300ER passenger to freighter conversion program, with six conversions ordered. Mammoth says it currently has two of AviaAM Leasing's 777-300ER aircraft undergoing work at the facility of Aspire MRO, its modifications partner based in Fort Worth, Texas.

August 15, 2024

Lufthansa Technik Adapts Recruiting Strategies

Lufthansa Technik reported that it will welcome 339 new apprentices and dual students at its German Locations this month, filling 94% of all available positions of this type. It has deployed several recruitment programs, including a Senior Experts program targeting people of retirement age and a women@LHT program to attract more women to the workforce. It is also focusing on what it calls low-threshold application methods, such as adding an option for people to apply for jobs via WhatsApp.

AIESL Signs Boeing P-8I Component Overhaul Deal

AI Engineering Services Limited (AIESL) has signed a deal with Boeing to provide overhaul of P-8I components for the Indian Navy’s maritime reconnaissance and surveillance aircraft. AIESL is also working with Boeing on aviation maintenance technician training in India.

August 14, 2024

EFW Gets EASA CAMO Approval

Elbe Flugzeugwerke (EFW) has received continuing airworthiness management organization (CAMO) approval from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, enabling it to offer airworthiness management and technical services for passenger and freighter aircraft. EFW says it is the only freighter conversion provider in the world to hold CAMO approval together with Part 145 approval, design organization approval and production organization approval.

AirBaltic Starts Rolling Out AMOS Software

AirBaltic has begun implementing Swiss-AS’s AMOS software to manage aircraft maintenance operations for its growing fleet. Swiss-AS says the implementation project is expected to take 18 months. The airline has opted for AMOS Airline/MRO Edition and AMOSmobile/EXEC.

August 13, 2024

Woodward, Lufthansa Technik Ink Component MRO Deal

Woodward has signed a five-year MRO agreement with Lufthansa Technik covering aircraft engine components. Under the deal, Woodward will perform services at its facilities in Rockford, Illinois and Prestwick, UK for Lufthansa Technik covering certain components it manufactures.

GAMECO Performs First A380 12-Year Check For Emirates

An Emirates Airbus A380 arrived at the hangars of Guangzhou Aircraft Maintenance Engineering Company (GAMECO) in Guangzhou, China last month, marking the first outsourced 12-year check by the Dubai-based carrier. GAMECO has been operating a nose-to-tail heavy maintenance line for Emirates' A380 fleet since January 2024.

August 12, 2024

AJW Group Wins Ascend Airways Deal

AJW Group has secured a power-by-the-hour contract with UK-based ACMI and charter carrier Ascend Airways. The deal covers tailored support for Ascend’s Boeing 737NG and MAX aircraft, including components and MRO services provided by AJW Technique in Montreal.

B&H Launches Mobile Inventory Management Platform

Aerospace and aviation logistics provider B&H Worldwide has launched a mobile version of its FirsTRAC inventory management platform, through which customers can manage inventory activities via smartphone. FirstTRAC Mobile enables inventory tracking, order monitoring, access to transport documentation and ability to follow transport progression.

August 9, 2024

IndiGo Plans Business Class Seat Upgrades

IndiGo has selected Recaro Aircraft Seating’s R5 seats to upgrade the business class cabins of its Airbus A321neo fleet. It ordered 45 shipsets, with deliveries scheduled to begin in the fourth quarter and installations set to finish by the end of 2025.

LATAM Invests In MRO In Sao Carlos

LATAM Airlines Brazil signed a memorandum of understanding with the country’s Ministry of Labor and Employment to train and employ staff at its MRO facility in Sao Carlos. The facility currently employs around 1,800 people. LATAM also plans to invest $2 billion in Brazil over the next two years in areas including maintenance, products, technologies and passenger services.

August 8, 2024

VAECO Deploys AMOS Software

Vietnam Airlines Engineering Company (VAECO) has implemented Swiss-AS developed AMOS software across its maintenance operation. The software went live in April 2024 following a 16-month implementation phase, which Swiss-AS says was finished two months ahead of schedule. VAECO, which operates hangars in Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang, says 20 years' worth of data comprising almost 36 million rows of data was migrated across to the platform. In addition, VAECO says it has added two mobility extensions by opting for AMOSmobile/EXEC and AMOSmobile/STORES modules.

StandardAero Wins Avianca Leap 1A Contract

StandardAero has signed a non-exclusive agreement with Avianca to provide support for the CFM International Leap 1A engines powering the airline’s fleet of Airbus A320neos. StandardAero became the first independent MRO provider in North America to become a CFM Branded Service Agreement holder for the Leap 1A and 1B in March.

August 7, 2024

New Aeroflot Technics Line Maintenance Stations

Aeroflot Technics has opened a new line maintenance station at Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk Airport, which will provide maintenance services for Airbus A320 family, A350, Boeing 737-800 and 777 aircraft operated by Aeroflot Group. It also opened a new line maintenance station at Surgut International Airport, which will service Airbus A320 and Boeing 737NG aircraft. Aeroflot Technics now operates 17 line maintenance stations in Russia.

Spirit Gets Pratt & Whitney AOG Credits

Spirit Airlines reported in its second quarter 2024 result that Pratt & Whitney had issued it $37.2 million in AOG credits based on AOG days throughout the second quarter. The airline estimates it will average approximately 20 AOG aircraft for fiscal year 2024, and it plans to discuss arrangements with the engine OEM for any AOG aircraft after Dec. 31.

August 6, 2024

VAS Acquires 17 More A320s For Teardown

VAS Aero Services has acquired another 17 Airbus A320 airframes for teardown and used serviceable material parts redistribution. The teardowns will take place at various locations in the U.S. over the next 12-18 months, and harvested parts will be marketed through VAS’s global network and through Airbus and Satair customer support channels.

Czech Airlines Taps CSAT For Wheels And Brakes Support

Czech Airlines Technics (CSAT) has entered an exclusive partnership with Czech Airlines, through which its components and spares division will be providing wheels and brakes support for the airline’s fleet.

August 2, 2024

Riyadh Air Opts For Boeing Digital Maintenance Tools

Riyadh Air has selected several of Boeing’s digital solutions, including Airplane Health management for predictive maintenance, Toolbox Tasks and Toolbox Library for managing maintenance documentation, Electronic Flight Bag and Electronic Flight Folder.

August 1, 2024

Lufthansa Technik Lands First Chinese Leap Customer

Lufthansa Technik and Guangxi Beibu Gulf Airlines, a Chinese airline based at Nanning Wuxu International Airport in Guangxi, have announced an agreement for the maintenance of CFM Leap 1A engines. The carrier is Lufthansa Technik's first Leap service contract in China and follows the German MRO obtaining regulatory approval from the Civil Aviation Administration of China earlier this year.

Epcor Gets New APU Capability

AFI KLM E&M subsidiary Epcor has acquired a license for Honeywell HGT1700 auxiliary power unit maintenance for Airbus A350 aircraft. Epcor’s facility at Amsterdam Schiphol-Rijk will offer the services.