AMSTERDAM—The Pentagon’s demand for TF34 engine spare parts is hurting the ability of commercial maintenance, repair and overhaul shops to service CF34 customer needs, says Lufthansa Technik Vice President Corporate Strategy David Doyle.
The U.S. military, under the defense production act, can prioritize its access to such components and has done so, Doyle said at Aviation Week’s MRO Europe annual conference and exhibition. One tangible place this is playing out is in CF34 bearings, he said, where demand for the part for TF34 and other military engines is getting priority.
“We're down the chain on that. So our customers' engines are sitting there months-long, waiting for these parts, and that's something that we need to then deal with on our customer interface,” Doyle said Oct. 27.
“We need European supply chains that can produce some of these parts,” he said, so that they are then not constrained by U.S. military rules.
The Pentagon situation is only one of the geostrategic impacts MRO providers are contending with.
“It's caused a major change in philosophy, and particularly on our core component product,” Doyle said. “We have billions off euros worth of components that are used by so many airlines worldwide, but we're having to create now special U.S. pools to serve our U.S. customers.”
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