The Middle East aircraft maintenance market has commanded much growth and development in the past decade, driven largely by the success of Dubai International Airport and other hubs. Market-watchers expect the expansion of air traffic volume and fleet sizes in the region to continue, and MRO along with them. By 2015, the UAE will have more commercial aircraft than Japan, now the world's third-largest economy, says Bill Lay, PricewaterhouseCoopers' Dubai-based partner.
Maintenance operates in a global world with an increasingly fragmented supply chain. Everyone has or is moving toward greater automation of data handling and transfer—but with widely different systems. How can all these systems talk to each other?
The most efficient way to perform airframe maintenance is nose-to-tail, with one aircraft after another of the same type moving smoothly through the heavy check lines. Hangars, tools and manpower are thus constantly employed. Labor works at tasks they are trained for and experienced at, for regular wages. Crucial turn-time commitments can be met with good planning and no unpleasant surprises.
The Substrate Technology STI-3030 Prep/Master grinder is ideal for polishing products greater than 10,000 sq. ft. and has a mastic removal rate of 500 sq. ft. per hour. Its cleaning path is 28 ft. by 56 ft., and the machine runs on a 30 hp., three-phase motor. The STI-3030 has a concrete polishing rate of 1,100 sq. ft. per hour. www.substratetechnology.com
AirAsia's founder Tony Fernandes is pushing for the low-cost carrier and Malaysia Airlines (MAS) to collaborate on airline MRO, pilot training and ground services to achieve cost savings through economies of scale. Fernandes told reporters in Kuala Lumpur that AirAsia may be sending its Airbus A320s to MAS Engineering & Maintenance for heavy checks. “If you put the volume of MAS and AirAsia [together], it becomes a mega MRO that can become a real competitor to Singapore's MRO,” he says.
FL Technics has expanded its maintenance partnership with Europe Airpost to provide maintenance services for the airline's three Boeing 737 classic aircraft. The first arrived at FL Technics' maintenance base in Vilinus, Lithuania in September.
ST Aerospace Technologies (Xiamen) Co. Ltd. (STATCO) has opened a facility in Xiamen, China, that will overhaul and repair the CFM International CFM56-7B and -5B series engines that power the Boeing 737NG and Airbus A320 aircraft, respectively. The new joint venture facility has the capacity to handle 300 engines per year.
An 11-member panel completed one of the most comprehensive reviews of airworthiness directive (AD) management issues ever undertaken. The end of August marked another chapter in the controversy surrounding Southwest Airlines' AD compliance issues that captured headlines in 2008.
Component Control has announced a new tool, Web Online RFQ, which enables aviation suppliers to integrate a branded parts search engine and RFQ capabilities into their own websites. It is available to both users and non-users of its core management support product, Quantum Control. Component Control also launched a new ecommerce resource for sourcing aircraft parts with Aero Inventory; its web store is located at aeroinv.com.
Mid-Canada Mod Center is in the process of re-locating from the Lester B. Pearson International Airport's mid-field complex to new facilities in the north end. It plans to start operating at there on Nov. 1.
Xtreme Polishing Systems' Xtreme Skinny used diamond concrete polishing pads at AAR's Miami facility to achieve the floor's wet and shiny finish. The pads are color-coded for abrasion identification and come in grits from 50 to 3000. The pads are attached to a polisher or grinder during the floor restoration project. The pads polish 10,000 to 15,000 sq. ft. www.xtremepolishingsystems.com
Lufthansa Technik Philippines plans to open a one-bay hangar, big enough to hold an A380, in February. It will perform cabin modifications and C checks for about 12 aircraft per year in the new space.
Rockwell Collins' SAT-2100B satellite communications system is a compact, lightweight Inmarsat satellite system that operates multi-channel voice and low-speed PC data capability. It enables up to two simultaneous Swift64 or SwiftBroadband channels using the HST-2110B transceiver and HCM-2100B high-speed data configuration module. The HST-2110B is a two-MCU unit that only weighs 8.5 pounds.
Lufthansa Technik announced that it has signed a long-term contract with Hamilton Sundstrand, the largest systems supplier on the 787, to service a broad range of its components, including bleedless systems. This agreement also enables LHT to become part of Hamilton Sundstrand's MRO supplier network for the aircraft.
What are you doing to ensure your business is competitive? Cemil Sayar, technical director for SunExpress, promotes financial training for the carrier's maintenance staff to empower them to effectively control budgets and costs (see Interview, pg. 13). Despite that cost concerns permeate every layer of the supply chain, how many companies encourage money management training?
Nok Air has finalized a deal appointing Lufthansa Technik as its heavy maintenance service provider for its ATR 72s and Boeing 737-800s. The Thai low-cost carrier is due to start operating its first 737-800 in November, but that aircraft first went in for a heavy check on Oct. 26 with Lufthansa Technik, says Nok Air CEO Patee Sarasin. The airline operates 10 Boeing 737-400s but is replacing these with 737-800s. It has secured six 737-800s so far, from a mix of lessors, and the carrier plans to ask its board for approval to lease five more, Patee says.
As airlines look to increase passenger comfort and connectivity on their aircraft, many are looking to retrofit the Inmarsat SwiftBroadband satellite communications system, or satcom system on older aircraft. A satcom system with SwiftBroadband allows the operator to offer e-mail, text and telephone services to passengers.
It is hard to imagine that airlines are still using bulky tape systems to show movies to passengers in an age where smartphones are the norm, but in many cases the old technology can be challenging to replace.
There are three ways a manager can learn about a potential safety problem in his organization: (1) he sees it firsthand, (2) his employees bring the issue to his attention, and (3) an incident occurs and the subsequent investigation reveals the problem. Because the aim of a safety program is to avoid #3, and managers are unlikely to spot more than a fraction of potentially unsafe situations, the best route is #2.
Turkish Technic has signed a base maintenance services agreement for one Boeing 737-500 re-delivery check and a Boeing 737-400 C check. Pegasus Airlines is based in Istanbul and operates 29 next-generation Boeing aircraft and 3 Boeing 737 classic aircraft. Turkish Technic has also signed a C check maintenance service agreement with Onur Air for two Airbus A321 aircraft. It will complete the maintenance work for these aircraft at its facilities in Istanbul. Parts/Components
Qantas says industrial action by its unions have hurt its maintenance operations so much that had to ground five aircraft and cut flights at O&M's presstime. The carrier says the flight and fleet reductions will remain in place for a month. The grounded aircraft will be four of its 54 Boeing 737s and one of its 25 767s. This will result in 97 flights being cut. The reductions will only apply to mainline operations, and not subsidiaries Jetstar, Jetconnect or QantasLink.
InfoTrust Group has added Michael Wm. Denis as VP consulting, bringing more than two decades of aviation experience to the group. Denis will lead corporate strategy for InfoTrust's new consulting and advisory service practice. In the past, Denis has held positions at ICF SH&E, Blue Water Solutions and Accenture.
CFM International has appointed Cedric Goubet to the role of executive VP, replacing Olivier Savin. Goubet will be responsible for overseeing programs carried out by CFM and will serve as the primary liason between Snecma and GE.
