KP Aviation is expanding its MRO and leasing capabilities to support its core used serviceable material (USM) business, and the company’s new chief commercial officer (CCO) sees plenty of growth opportunities on the horizon.
Scott Butler, who became CCO of the aftermarket materials and services provider on May 8, tells Aviation Week that KP Aviation will “be looking for all avenues of monetization and acquisitions that we can get to support the core business” in the coming years.
KP Aviation was launched in 2001 as a full-service USM provider, but it received investment from Bain Capital in 2023, which is helping to fuel expansions into areas such as leasing and MRO. In February, the company announced its vertical integration of Airside MRO, a component repair station based in Gilbert, Arizona, near KP Aviation’s headquarters near Mesa Gateway Airport.
The initial focus, says Butler, was to “control our own destiny and costs a little bit more” by incorporating internal maintenance capabilities for components such as flight controls and engine thrust reversers, thereby reducing lead times and part control issues. KP Aviation is looking at further expansion to support third-party customers, including airlines.
Airside MRO’s primary focus is narrowbodies such as the Airbus A320 family and Boeing 737NG, but it is expanding capabilities for the A330 and 767. Butler says KP Aviation is looking to double its staff to around 50 technicians in the coming years as the company gets “further into the supply chain.”
For instance, Airside MRO is looking at adding MRO capabilities for A320neos in response to KP Aviation’s recent acquisition of two former Spirit Airlines A320neo airframes, which will be disassembled for USM. Butler says KP Aviation saw a business opportunity in the A320neo USM market as the type approaches “the sweet spot” for six- and 12-year heavy maintenance checks.
“That's when you start doing major material purchases and upgrades, landing gears, nacelles and things like that, which are high value. Until you get into that kind of market space, we wouldn't want to be sitting on that inventory until we have the market to push it,” he says. “So, as we started seeing that come to fruition in the peak life cycle, now we see the ability to move the material. We typically don't want to sit on any material longer than a couple of years.”
He adds that KP Aviation will “be on the lookout” for more of the aircraft type because “it’s not just a two-off—it’s going to be a long-term cycle.”
The company’s inventory currently has “a little bit of everything,” says Butler, including a large proportion of material for legacy narrowbodies and engines. He says KP Aviation is “one of the bigger suppliers of [GE Aerospace] CF6-80s and one of the biggest suppliers of [CFM International] CFM56s in the marketplace today.”
KP Aviation is “always looking for the material to feed the beast,” Butler says, noting that recent retirement waves and airline bankruptcies are driving opportunities. “[Given] the large investment arm we have and the access to capital we have, we're well positioned to capitalize in the right conditions,” he adds.
The aftermarket’s push to open a USM market in China could also create opportunities. Butler, who is on the Aircraft Fleet Recycling Association board, says KP Aviation is in the early stages of participating in the parts registry initiative between the association and the Civil Aviation Administration of China. “We see 2027 as the opportunity to start investing in that region,” he says, noting that USM opportunities in China are “coming on board now, and it’s going to come quickly once it does.”
He adds: “That’s a very large market that’s almost untapped right now. There are some teardown groups inside China that have started to do a little bit [such as the Airbus Lifecycle Services Center]. I think you’re going to see not necessarily a wave, but an opportunity that will keep growing, because [China is] at that point where they start needing material quite a bit to serve their own domestic needs.”
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