LONDON—Attendees at July's Farnborough International Airshow gained insight into the crucial role that projected long-term maintenance costs play when airlines negotiate deals for a clean-sheet airliner—especially if the engine is an all-new design, too. On opening day, Akbar Al Baker, chief executive of Qatar Airways, quashed speculation about a likely show order for Bombardier’s CSeries when he told reporters that talks were in limbo until Pratt & Whitney agreed to maintenance cost guarantees for its PW1000G geared turbofan.
India’s Air Works aims to expand rapidly into the country’s booming market for aircraft maintenance by buying foreign specialist operators and replicating their expertise at home. It sees the expansion strategy, already used with its purchase of British aircraft painting firm Air Livery, as the answer to a range of challenges: how to quickly gather expertise, avoid overloading management, lure new customers, and establish and keep a reputation for quality.
Lufthansa Technik Shenzhen added a new engine parts and accessories repair, or EPAR, product to expand its nacelle services. It initially will repair common nacelle assemblies and tail cones for the IAE V2500 engine.
Qantas Mainline fleet*: Six Airbus A380-800s, six Boeing 747-400ERs, 21 Boeing 747-400s, 26 Boeing 767-300ERs, 41 Boeing 737-800s, 21 Boeing 737-400s, 11 Boeing 717-200s, 10 Airbus A330-300s and seven Airbus A330-200s Employees*: total staff 30,000, including 6,000 in maintenance and engineering * Does not include Jetstar, which is operated as a separate carrier, or QantasLink’s turboprop fleet.
LiteAir Aviation Products reissued STC to fabricate a LiteAir window plug assembly on Boeing 777-200, -200LR, -300 and -300ER series aircraft, STC ST02073SE
Rockwell Collins Aerospace & Electronics to install the Rockwell Collins Model 4000 head-up guidance system with enhanced vision system capability on Boeing 737-700, -700C, -800, -900 and -900ER series aircraft, STC ST00039MC
Airbus inked a flight hour services tailored support package contract with Singapore Airlines to cover full component support, line and base airframe maintenance, and fleet technical management for five A340-500 ultra long-haul, all-business-class aircraft.
New Systems to install dual Universal Avionics flight management systems with global positioning system on Bombardier DHC-8-100, -200, -300 and -400 series aircraft, STC ST10977SC
Chippewa Aerospace amended STC to install protective covers for 1K4XD relay, traffic alert and collision avoidance systems processor, horizontal stabilizer control unit, stall protection computer, data concentrator unit, slat stab control unit, slat flap extend control unit, passenger address amplifier and fuel quantity computers on various Bombardier regional jet aircraft (Series 100, 440, 700, 701, 702, 705 and 900), STC ST03336AT
STG Aerospace amended STCs to install the Saftglo photoluminescent floor proximity emergency escape path marking system on Boeing 747-300 and -400 and 777-200 series aircraft, STCs ST02993AT and ST03684AT
Lufthansa Technical Training added new Airbus A330/A340 type training course capability with a cockpit simulation device called the Maintenance Flight Training Device, which it started using on A330 courses in August. It plans to extend the simulator’s use to Boeing types, starting with the Boeing 747-400.
Every good maintenance organization collects error data. Ideally, that data includes both reportable and non-reportable events. And ideally, it is being analyzed regularly to spot systemic problems and proactively address them. However, if your error reporting system stops there—as many companies’ systems do—you’re missing an opportunity to improve safety, data quality and employee trust. That often-missing piece? Feedback.
BEIJING—EVA Airlines offshoot Evergreen Aviation Technologies (EGAT) plans to work longer hours rather than add capacity to take advantage of its strength amid the downturn. A surge in demand for airliner cabin refurbishment, attributed to delays in the Airbus A380 and Boeing 787 programs, is also pushing the Taiwanese company to use its limited hangar space more intensively.
AJ Walter will support Thai charter airline Business Air’s three Boeing 767-300 fleet under a three-year, power-by-the-hour component provision contract.
Air Works India Engineering set up a $10-million stocking location at Bengaluru International Airport. The inventory will enable Honeywell to ship parts within 24 hrs. of the order and enable Air Works to supply the company with products including, fuel pumps, navigation and guidance unit modules for integrated avionics systems.
Commsoft signed a 10-concurrent-user contract with Sweden-based Nex Time Jet AB, which will use Commsoft OASES MRO management software to support its 13 Saab 340s, three BAe ATP, two Beech 1900D and one Beech King Air 200 aircraft.
Crane Aerospace & Electronics named David Perret general manager of its Lyon, France, site. Prior to this appointment, Perret served Crane as operations and customer support manager.
Delta TechOps extended its power-by-the-hour component support contract for Ryan International Airlines’ Boeing fleet through 2014. The new agreement expands coverage to all Boeing 767s for component support in North America and Europe, as well as one Boeing 757 for component support in North America.
The European Commission added Ghana’s Meridian Airways to its list of airlines banned from the EU for safety reasons and banned three freighter aircraft operated by another Ghanaian carrier, Airlift International, from operating into EU airspace. The EC explained that Meridian had been banned “as a consequence of a series of very poor results from inspections involving not only their aircraft but also facilities used by the airline in the EU.”
Seven Q Seven to replace Pratt & Whitney JT3D series engine with Pratt & Whitney JT8D-219 engine and associated systems in all positions on Boeing 707-300C series aircraft, STC ST02287LA
The November elections are expected to bring a major shake-up in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate. While pollsters were uncertain in October whether control of either chamber would flip to Republican control, they could say for certain that Republicans were expected to make significant gains in Congress.
