European MRO providers are facing tough times with the region’s economic outlook uncertain and industry trends making growth more difficult to achieve, prominent forecasters said at Aviation Week’s MRO Europe conference in Amsterdam.

The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), resisting industry suggestions to address the problem with new maintenance recommendations, has ordered CFM56-3 and -7 operators to replace accessory gearboxes (AGBs) to prevent oil leaks caused by incorrectly reinstalled covers.

A proposed tightening of the FAA’s English language proficiency requirements for key repair station employees is being criticized by Japan Airlines and Rockwell Collins. In its draft rewrite of Part 145 certification, the agency proposes that supervisory personnel, inspection personnel and anyone authorized to approve an article for return to service be required to “understand, speak, read and write English.” The current rule has similar requirements, with one key difference: the regulations do not require spoken English.

Rolls-Royce is introducing a new program for Fokker 70s and Fokker 100s that promises to decrease overhaul costs for their Tay engines

AFI KLM E&M and Lufthansa Technik, are to launch a new joint offer dedicated to component support for Embraer E-Jet family aircraft (E-170/E-175 and E-190/E-195).

Lucerne, Switzerland EASA Compliance Too High? The European engineering and maintenance community seems to be particularly concerned about the increasing amount of regulatory requirements with which an organization has to comply regardless of its size. This is especially true for small MRO organizations; as evidence, some are closing because they are spending half of their time documenting compliance.

Excluding retrofits or airworthiness-directive compliance, the worldwide market for overhauling Rolls-Royce Trent 700-series turbofans is projected at about $2 billion for the next three years, with Asian carriers accounting for the largest share of the work.

Airlines, leasing companies strive for common maintenance data standards for digital records.