Category: Commercial

StandardAero Signs Long-Term Service Agreement to Support CFM International LEAP-1A and LEAP-1B Engine MRO services

StandardAero has signed a long-term CFM Branded Service Agreement (CBSA) to support the CFM International LEAP-1A and LEAP-1B engines.  Under the terms of the CBSA, StandardAero becomes part of CFM’s authorized maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) network for the latest generation LEAP-1A and LEAP-1B engines, providing a full range of MRO services to operators worldwide.

Under the agreement, StandardAero becomes the first independent (non-airline) MRO provider in the Americas to sign a CBSA for both the LEAP-1A, which powers the Airbus A320neo family, and the LEAP-1B, which powers the Boeing 737-MAX series aircraft.  Thanks to the family’s commercial success, the global fleet of LEAP-1A and -1B engines is expected to grow significantly in the coming years and this agreement will enable operators to benefit from StandardAero’s expertise in delivering high quality support for narrowbody aircraft engines.

StandardAero will support the LEAP-1A and -1B from its 810,000 sq. ft. facility in San Antonio, which has benefitted from significant investment over the past five years and already provides a full range of narrowbody engine MRO support capabilities.  The company’s San Antonio facility also features a large test cell complex, which will provide performance and pass-off testing for the LEAP-1A and -1B.

StandardAero will also be developing new engine component repairs and industrialization through its Components & Accessories division’s network of locations and its Repair & Development Center of Excellence, expanding upon a variety of LEAP engine component and accessories repairs available to customers.

“StandardAero is honored to become part of the worldwide MRO network for the LEAP engine,” said Lewis Prebble, President of Airlines and Fleets for StandardAero.  “The CBSA agreement extends our existing 14-year relationship with CFM as an MRO provider for the CFM56-7B powerplant, and continues StandardAero’s expansion of its narrowbody engine support capabilities.  We look forward to meeting the needs and expectations of LEAP operators worldwide for many decades to come.”

“We have a long history with StandardAero through our CFM56 engine line.  This experience and their reputation as a highly respected MRO provider will help strengthen the CFM open network,” said Tom Levin, VP of CFM Commercial Programs for CFM parent company GE Aerospace.  “We are proud they are joining the LEAP open MRO ecosystem and anticipate that StandardAero will make significant contributions to the continued development of world-class support for the LEAP engine throughout its lifecycle.”

“We are delighted to add LEAP MRO capabilities in the US through this major partnership with StandardAero,” said Nicolas Potier, VP Support & Services for CFM parent company SAE.  “CBSA agreements are part of CFM strategy to give our airlines customers worldwide more choice in the market while helping them maximize their operations with the LEAP engine.”

Introduced in 2016, the LEAP engine family has set new industry standards for fuel efficiency, offering up to 20 percent better fuel consumption than previous generation engines, in addition to lower CO2 emissions.  To date, the LEAP family has accumulated more than 29 million engine flight hours and 13 million flight cycles in just over six years of commercial operation, during which time the LEAP has enabled operators to save more than 20 million tons of CO2.  LEAP engines power more than 2,300 aircraft in service with 165 operators worldwide.

StandardAero already provides a full range of MRO capabilities for the CFM International CFM56-7B from its CFM- and GE Aerospace-approved facility in Winnipeg, MB, Canada, which first commenced support of the engine as a GE Designated Fulfillment Center (DFC) in 2009.  The company also provides an extensive range of additional services for the CFM56 family, including component repair and overhaul capabilities through StandardAero Component Services (SACS); engine, module and used serviceable material (USM) asset management support through PTS Aviation; and engine health monitoring (EHM) data analysis services. 

Earlier this year, StandardAero announced the introduction of service center capabilities for the CFM56-7B at its DFW Center of Excellence at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.  Later this year, the company will be introducing dedicated CFM56-7B test capabilities at the DFW facility’s six-cell engine test center, with CFM56-5B capability to follow.

Aermetric Deploys Maintenance Software to Alaska Airlines 

Aerospace and Defense startup Aermetric is deploying its maintenance software to leading commercial carrier Alaska Airlines.

“We’re consistently looking at ways to enhance how we monitor and maintain our aircraft using data.” said Jason Lai, managing director of Engineering for Alaska.  “Adopting innovative technology to bolster operations is part of that journey. Aermetric built a truly standout platform that will help us continue to over-deliver on aircraft safety and reliability to do just that.”

The Aermetric Maintenance Platform is a SaaS maintenance and logistics hub that enables near-real-time analytics and smart fleet management for enterprise assets. According to Aermetric, its proprietary technology increases aircraft availability while providing substantial savings from unplanned maintenance. 

“We are on the edge of a digital transformation in aerospace” said Derek Waterman, founder and CEO of Aermetric. “Forward-thinkers like Alaska see major value in turbocharging their reliability programs with the power of big data—we’re excited to make that happen for them.”  Waterman added, “Alaska is a world class airline with a legacy of caring greatly about its guests, and that perfectly aligns with our vision to create value for everyone who flies.”

J&C Aero Will Provide CAMO Support for 30 Aircraft for Heston Airlines

J&C Aero has signed a three-year contract with Heston Airlines on continuous airworthiness management of the European charter air carrier’s current and upcoming Airbus A320s and A330s. The new agreement also covers line maintenance, aircraft delivery and cabin refurbishment services for the carrier’s growing fleet.  

The new agreement expands the existing cooperation between J&C Aero and Heston Airlines under which J&C Aero’s team already provides CAMO support to the carrier’s nine Airbus A320s, as well as supports the airline with line maintenance, cabin interior design and production services. Over the next three years, Heston Airlines plans to gradually increase its Airbus fleet to 30 narrow and widebody aircraft the delivery, refurbishment, and maintenance of which will be provided by or with the support of J&C Aero. 

“We have been supporting Heston Airlines since even before their first flight. And while we helped them to launch and maintain their daily operations, they supported and keep supporting us with our own development, namely the introduction of CAMO and line maintenance services. In other words, our growth is interwind, we share one DNA,” comments Laurynas Skukauskas, the CEO at J&C Aero. “Now that Heston Airlines is preparing for fleet expansion, we are extremely happy to be the ones to support them on this major step in their development.”

“J&C Aero’s team has proven itself on multiple occasions: from pre-delivery support to line maintenance and complicated cabin reconfiguration. They are always ready to go the extra mile, their mindset is focused on finding optimal solutions, and their communication is straightforward and transparent – everything an airline can ask for during challenging projects, particularly those related to major fleet expansion,” shares Valentin Ivanov, VP technical operations at Heston Airlines.

FDH Aero Appoints Ken Aso to Chief Operating Officer

FDH Aero (FDH), a global supply chain solutions provider for aerospace and defense OEMs and aftermarket segments, recently announced the appointment of industry veteran Ken Aso as chief operating officer.

Prior to joining FDH, Aso served as partner and senior advisor at Oliver Wyman, where he supported many leading OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers and distribution service providers in the global aerospace and defense market. Prior to Oliver Wyman, he served in various roles at Boeing Global Services including managing director of global services engineering, maintenance and mods product management and managing director of commercial spares category management. He also served as senior VP corporate strategy & customer development at StandardAero.  

“Operational leadership is critical for our strategic initiatives,” said Scott Tucker, president and CEO of FDH Aero. “Ken’s proven ability to combine his deep industry experience with his focus on execution will help us to advance our key initiatives further and faster.” 

Aso earned an MBA from The Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth. He also graduated from Walla Walla University with a BA in Business Administration. 

Manufacturer of Vammas Airport Snow Removal Equipment Names New President

C&C Manufacturing, the manufacturer of Vammas airport snow removal equipment with service and support worldwide, announced the appointment of David Bradford as president and COO. A seasoned executive, Bradford has more than 25 years’ experience in manufacturing and management at John Deere and most recently served as operations manager for Amazon’s fulfillment center in Bondurant, Iowa.

“C&C Manufacturing has grown over 125% last year with significant expansion in its core manufacturing business, its parts and service business, and it also opened a new certified refurbishing facility,” said Salvatore C. Calvino, chairman of C&C Manufacturing and CEO of Equivu Capital, a private investment firm that acquired C&C Manufacturing in 2021. “David’s depth of manufacturing expertise, leadership experience and strong track record of success makes him the ideal executive to lead C&C Manufacturing in this next phase of growth. We are extremely happy to have him join us in building the future of C&C.”

Most recently, Bradford served as operations manager for Amazon’s Bondurant, Iowa fulfillment center, and helped open this first center for Amazon in Iowa. Before that, he worked at John Deere for more than 22 years in a range of roles, including as director of global tractor and loader fulfillment (Moline,

Prior to that, he was general manager for John Deere Ottumwa Works, leading manufacturing for six product families of baling and mowing. During that time, Bradford served on the boards of the United Way, the Ottumwa Legacy Foundation and the local economic group, driving the “partners in progress” initiative.

In his long career at John Deere, he was also Factory Manager, John Deere Seeding Works (Valley City, ND), where he worked with the North Dakota Economic Develop Group on a $21 million factory expansion. He served in various other roles at John Deere, including Business Unit Manager Crawler Operations (Dubuque, IA) and Engineer in the Technical Center in Moline, Ill.

“I am thrilled to join C&C Manufacturing as president and lead it at this high-growth time, leveraging the backing of Sal Calvino, Gaylon Cowan and Jeff Cowan,” said David Bradford, president and COO of C&C Manufacturing. “My many years in the local Ottumwa community make it especially gratifying to join this amazing company and spearhead its manufacturing operations.”

Lufthansa Technik AERO Alzey Signs Five-Year Engine Repair Deal with Loganair

Lufthansa Technik AERO Alzey has signed a five year engine repair and overhaul agreement with the UK’s largest regional airline, Loganair.

The agreement, signed in February 2023, will see Lufthansa Technik AERO Alzey exclusively conduct repair and overhaul services on  PW127E/F/M engines  installed  on the  ATR 42/72 aircraft currently in service with Loganair with the option to add additional engines as Loganair’s fleet expands. The new agreement with Glasgow based Loganair  is a further step by Lufthansa Technik AERO Alzey to welcome new customers to its portfolio, strengthen its presence in the European market and ensure continuous flow of work into its facilities.

Farsound Unveils Brand-New UK Headquarters

Farsound has moved into their new 58,000 sq.ft. headquarters in Brentwood Essex, UK as of April 3, 2023.

The state-of-the art facility is located close to Farsound’s old HQ building and has been designed and built entirely from scratch. The building, which is considerably bigger than Farsound’s previous HQ, has capacity for expansion, with scope to add mezzanine floors and additional facilities as the company grows and recruits more people across all departments and disciplines.

The new HQ building has been designed with sustainability and eco-friendly construction at its heart. Solar panels on the roof provide electricity for power and lighting, EV charge points are installed in the car park for electric vehicles, and reclaimed greywater will be used for flushing toilets.

Meanwhile, staff comfort and good quality working conditions are also key factors, with many aspects of the new building designed to encourage a collaborative culture. Inside, the layout is open plan to allow for flexible working. An on-site canteen provides nutritious meals, while relaxation spaces, games rooms, gym facilities, yoga areas and attractive décor are all designed to enhance the working experience and support the health and wellbeing of Farsound staff.

Technology also plays a large part in the new facility with a focus on the latest IT and logistics systems. For example, the operations area in the new HQ building includes a £1.2 million robotic system for the automatic picking of aerospace parts.

“We are thrilled to be able to move into our new HQ in Brentwood, Essex. It has been more than a year in the planning and represents a significant investment,” said Kevin Sargent, executive chairman of Farsound. “We firmly believe that it will support our ambitious growth plans, as we expand our team, our services and our market reach, not only here in the UK, but around the world.”

Staff will work from the new building from the beginning of April, with a formal launch event planned for later in the Spring. Representatives from the local council will formally open the building then, while Farsound colleagues will be treated to a special drinks reception to officially welcome them to their new Farsound HQ. The building is the largest premises owned by the aviation and MRO logistics specialist company, which operates out of facilities in the UK, USA, Canada, Spain, Japan and Singapore.

AAR to Acquire Nine Boeing 757-200 Passenger Aircraft Equipped with 18 Rolls-Royce RB211 Engines

AAR CORP., a provider of aviation services to commercial and government operators, MROs, and OEMs, announced its subsidiary AAR Supply Chain will acquire nine Boeing 757-200 passenger aircraft equipped with 18 Rolls-Royce RB211 engines from American Airlines.

The assets have been most recently operated by American Airlines.

“The acquisition of these aircraft and engines will enable AAR to continue to support the RB211-powered 757 cargo market,” said Brian Salvatori, AAR’s vice president of Asset Trading.

Jamco America Announces Decorative Branding Panels

Jamco America has released its new durable, decorative branding panels. These panels offer airlines a cost-effective solution to update their aircraft’s forward and mid cabin areas. Branding opportunities include the use of color and embossed logos and other decorative features.

“The new Jamco decorative branding panels provide a perfect opportunity for airlines to refresh or rebrand the cabin interior,” said John Cornell, Director of R&D at Jamco America. “These new panels are not only beautifully finished, but are extremely durable, which translates into a long lasting and cost-effective solution for airlines.”

Jamco America’s decorative branding panels are thermoformed and are currently being provided at the door one area and mid cabin for narrow-body single aisle aircraft.

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ATP’s ChronicX Named Winner in 2023 Artificial Intelligence Excellence Awards 

 ATP’s ChronicX solution has been named a winner in the Artificial Intelligence Excellence Awards program presented by the Business Intelligence Group.  

ChronicX uses natural language processing and machine learning to analyze aircraft defect information, automatically pinpointing and organizing issue clusters. The complete advanced web and mobile solution provides automatic identification of chronic aircraft defects, chronic resolution management and defect analysis to improve aircraft safety and reliability. Currently in use on 25 percent of the world’s commercial airline fleet, ChronicX uncovers recurring defects and previously undetected issues, at both the tail and fleet level. It also detects emerging failure modes that are yet to reach critical status. The solution proactively enables engineers to respond with greater speed and accuracy to reduce delays and aircraft downtime. 

“This award recognizing ChronicX reflects ATP’s long-term investment in providing cutting-edge AI technology for the aviation market and is a testament to our team’s commitment to delivering value to our customers,” said Norman Happ, chief executive officer of ATP. “This accolade demonstrates our continued dedication to helping the leading commercial carriers around the world save hundreds of millions of dollars in parts and labor, as well as reduced delays and cancellations with our maintenance, analytics and guided diagnostics solution.” 

With the release of a new suite of features to the platform in the past year, ChronicX Mobile allows aircraft mechanics to see the entire maintenance history of the aircraft they are working on, leveraging artificial intelligence and machine learning to assist in the diagnosis of issues and enables them to solve problems the first time. This eliminates wasted parts and temporary fixes used to pass the problem to the next repair facility.  

New collaboration capabilities allow users to share experiences and ask for help from experts – all within the context of the aircraft or type of aircraft being worked on in real time. With the addition of new dashboards and deep integrations, customers can now access a command center view to help better understand what repair centers excel at which areas of an aircraft, providing more focused improvements than was ever possible before. 

Utilizing ATP’s ChronicX solution, a major airline reduced unexpected flight delays due to repairs needed by 60 percent, saving them over $50 million in annual repair costs. Another aviation customer reported a 20 percent reduction in repeat defects, resulting in $400,000 in savings per year.  

“We are so proud to name ATP ChronicX as a winner in our inaugural Artificial Intelligence Excellence Awards program,” said Maria Jimenez, chief nominations officer for Business Intelligence Group. “It was clear to our judges that ChronicX was using AI to improve the lives of their customers and employees. Congratulations to the entire team!” 

Organizations from across the globe submitted their recent innovations for consideration in the Artificial Intelligence Excellence Awards. Nominations were then judged by a select group of business leaders and executives who volunteer their time and expertise to score submissions.