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Inside MRO News Briefs And Contracts, January-February 2026
BAESL will begin operations early this year after receiving maintenance organization approval from the Civil Aviation Administration of China.
HIGHLIGHTS
Rolls-Royce Unveils China MRO Joint Venture
Rolls-Royce has added further capacity to its global aftermarket network after opening its Beijing-based engine maintenance joint venture with Air China, Beijing Aero Engine Services Ltd. (BAESL).
BAESL, which specializes in the Trent 700, XWB-84 and 1000 engines, is the UK manufacturer’s first facility on the Chinese mainland. The shop’s capacity is expected to ramp up to 250 overhauls per year by 2034.
Air China holds 50% of the joint venture. The Chinese flag carrier has been a longtime customer of Rolls-Royce and operates all of the engine types serviced by the new venture. This includes Trent 700s for the Airbus A330, XWBs for the A350 and 1000s for its Boeing 787 fleet.
BAESL is now one of four authorized joint venture overhaul facilities within the Rolls-Royce global services network, which comprises two Rolls maintenance facilities, seven joint venture or independent authorized maintenance centers and customer-owned shops.
AAR Acquires Aircraft Interiors Specialist
AAR Corp. has entered a definitive agreement to purchase Aircraft Reconfig Technologies (ART) from ZIM Aircraft Cabin Solutions through a $35 million all-cash transaction.
ART is a Greensboro, North Carolina-based aircraft interiors engineering company that specializes in passenger configuration for airlines, providing services such as project management, engineering and certification. The company holds FAA Part 21 and Organization Designation Authorization certifications, and its portfolio includes part manufacturer approval, supplemental type certificates and patents.
AAR says the acquisition will expand the engineering and certification capabilities in its repair and engineering business, enabling it to perform more complex aircraft modification work to complement its MRO services.
AAR expects to close the transaction in the fourth quarter of its fiscal 2026, subject to customary closing conditions.
ITP Aero To Acquire Aero Norway
ITP Aero has signed a binding agreement to acquire CFM International CFM56 engine repair specialist Aero Norway.
Aero Norway operates from Stavanger, Norway, and serves airlines, lessors and asset managers, among others. The company holds full capability for CFM56-3, -5B and -7B variants. In recent years, it has started adding capabilities such as hot section inspections for Leap-1A and -1B engines.
The acquisition further advances ITP Aero’s commercial aftermarket ambitions. The company has established capability in defense and business aviation engine maintenance but has started building up its commercial engine MRO capabilities as it looks to become a long-term player in that segment.
The deal is expected to be finalized in the first half of this year, subject to approvals. No transaction fee was disclosed in the announcement of the deal.
CONTRACTS
Airinmar signed a multiyear extension of its contract with Air Methods for aircraft warranty management and value engineering services.
Atitech was selected by Turkey’s Southwind Airlines to provide Airbus A321 and A330 as well as Boeing 737 and 777 heavy maintenance in Naples, Italy.
Collins Aerospace signed a multiyear extension of its global distribution agreement with AAR Corp.
FEAM Aero was selected by GlobalX Airlines to provide Airbus A320 line maintenance support in Miami.
FL Technics was selected by Flyadeal to perform A320 maintenance.
Frontier Airlines selected Lufthansa Technik to provide Predictive Health Analytics, Condition Monitoring and Technical Repetitives Examination applications from its Aviatar platform.
GA Telesis secured a multiyear landing gear overhaul and exchange contract from an unnamed major worldwide cargo airline.
Poland’s LS Technics was selected by Air Arabia to provide A320 line maintenance in Krakow and Warsaw.
Lufthansa Technik renewed its Boeing 777 component support deal with Swiss for 12 -300ERs for 10 more years.
SAMCO Aircraft Maintenance was selected to provide continuing airworthiness management organization services for the first Embraer 190F being leased by Regional One to Bridges Air Cargo.
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