While the aviation industry focuses on how quickly Airbus can increase production of its bestselling A320neo family, activity is also stepping up at the other end of the market with part-out companies.
Unical Aviation has announced the acquisition of a “fleet” of A320neo airframes for disassembly by subsidiary ecube, with the first aircraft due for part-out this month.
Unical described the project as the first dedicated disassembly program for A320neo-family aircraft.
“As the first to launch a disassembly effort on A320neo aircraft, Unical is staying ahead of the curve to meet the evolving needs of our airline and MRO customers,” said David Dicken, executive vice president of assets at Unical Aviation. “These assets will soon be transformed into high-demand material to support operators worldwide with cost-effective, timely aftermarket solutions.”
Although the A320neo family's average age is only 3.76 years, according to Aviation Week Network’s 2025 Commercial Fleet & MRO Forecast, some are being torn down for their engines, to cover inspections and upgrades of Pratt & Whitney geared turbofan (GTF) and CFM Leap engines.
By acquiring and disassembling the A320neo airframes, Unical said it is accelerating the availability of next-generation components for the market and helping reduce turnaround times for critical maintenance, although there would appear to be limited extra benefit in this respect given that the A320neo has about 95% airframe commonality with A320ceo, for which the part-out market is well-established.
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