FORT WORTH—Engine leasing specialists are further investing in their MRO capabilities in areas such as piece parts repairs, having identified supply chain bottlenecks.
Among these are FTAI Aviation, described by its Head of CFM Business Sam Hammond as “an asset company with comprehensive maintenance capabilities,” and has a fleet of more than 100 aircraft and more than 500 engines which are offered on exchange and leasing deals. Its maintenance operations consist of facilities in Miami, which focus on module swaps, field hospital maintenance and engine testing.
More recently, it has a location in Montreal, which was acquired from Lockheed Martin Commercial Engine Solutions last year and focuses on heavy maintenance, life limited parts, performance restorations, piece parts repairs and testing.
Hammond, speaking at Aviation Week’s Engine Leasing Trading & Finance Americas event, says FTAI is prioritizing investments in capacity and capabilities, pinpointing piece parts repair capabilities as an area it is looking to solidify its MRO offerings. “That is one of the bottlenecks, especially for those capabilities that are single source in the market,” he says.
Hammond says FTAI’s MRO shops focus primarily on capacity for FTAI’s assets, with the company holding capability for around 70% of the CFM International CFM56 engine program. “This is where we are focusing a lot of our development,” Hammond adds.
Florida-headquartered GA Telesis is also planning similar investments into piece parts repairs. “There’s no question there is a bottleneck,” says Marc Cho, President of LIFT & Chief Investment Officer, GA Telesis. “Being more self-sufficient in piece parts repair and component repair is part of our overall strategy.”
The company operates a heavy engine maintenance facility in Helsinki that has capability for full engine performance restorations and testing on CFM56-5B, 7B and 7C engines as well as General Electric CF6-80s. The company also operates two quick-turn locations in Finland and more recently in Wilmington, Ohio, in the U.S. through a joint venture with Air Transport Services Group. “This gives us a lot of flexibility as an asset owner, investor and lessor,” says Cho of the company’s MRO network. Cho adds that GA Telesis will continue to invest in capabilities for the current-generation engine types it services, given demand is set to remain strong for several years yet.
Conversely, Steve Chirico, VP Engine Technical Support, Willis Lease Finance Corporation (WLFC), says it will focus increasingly on the industry’s move into the newer engine technologies. “As the leasing business drives us into the newer technology, our engine shops are going to follow along with that and try to support the leasing business side of it,” he says.
The lessor has maintenance capabilities for light performance restorations and specific targeted workscopes on CFM-manufactured engines through its aftermarket services business. “We don’t really get into LLP changes and things of that nature, but the business has grown to stacking high pressure compressors, and we’ve got some vendors that can help with grind and those kinds of things,” he says.
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