Triple Competence:
All good things come in threes

Lufthansa Technik Component Services (LTCS) in Tulsa / Oklahoma continues its growth path by expanding into further capabilities. Recently, the company received the approval of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC). The Chinese authority has approved LTCS as an "adequate organization to accomplish maintenance of components". Additionally, LTCS has become the 33rd design department of Lufthansa Technik's EASA 21/J Design Organization (DO) and the first one in the Americas.

The DO status allows LTCS to create their own approved data which differentiates the company from many other repair stations. This is a big step forward in developing further repair methods to improve the component services of the company. Customers can benefit from shorter turnaround times, reliability improvements and from overcoming material obsolescence.

 "In 2017 the idea was born, that LTCS should have their own Design Engineers to be as flexible as possible in a constantly changing aftermarket environment. After two years of training and mentorship program, LTCS is very proud to start this new chapter with three Design Engineers", said Tobias Baumgart, COO of Lufthansa Technik Component Services. 

LTCS is now certified by the FAA, the EASA and the CAAC. Today, more than 680 employees are working at its eleven locations throughout North, Central and South America. The company offers a comprehensive bandwidth of Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul services for aircraft components. The maintenance of commercial aircraft components encompasses a wide range of services from repairs of single components all the way to a complete material management system with access to Lufthansa Technik's comprehensive component pool.

Asiana Airlines has signed a comprehensive component support contract with Lufthansa Technik AG. Under the terms of the new agreement, Lufthansa Technik will provide Total Component Support (TCS®) for the entire fleet of Airbus A320 family aircraft, including the A321neo version joining the fleet in the future. The ten-year contract started in July 2019 and covers a maximum of 79 aircraft.

Danny Kim, the General Manager of Asiana Airlines, said: "Lufthansa Technik is a strategic partner for us who has proven over years that it can guarantee long-term security in the material supply of our fleets. We are convinced that this successful cooperation will also prove itself in the component supply of our new A321neo aircraft."

Kijung Shin, Corporate Key Account Manager Lufthansa Technik, said: "During the past decades, Lufthansa Technik has always been committed to providing customized services and optimal solutions to Asiana. The new contract underlines the trust of the airline in our credibility and reliability and motivates us to raise our all-round performance to an even higher level."

The contract holds provisions for being converted from an integrated Total Component Support (TCS®) agreement including pooling to a Total Component Maintenance (TCM) closed-loop component repair and overhaul support in the mid-term.

Lufthansa Technik and Asiana Airlines have been working together for more than 25 years already. Lufthansa Technik also provides component maintenance for the Asiana Boeing 777-200ER fleet, an integrated Total Component Support for the airline's Airbus A320, A330 and A350 fleets as well as V2500 and CF6 engine support and heavy maintenance for the carrier's Airbus A380 fleet.

Lufthansa Technik Malta is now officially prepared to carry out all overhaul work on the Airbus A350-1000. The company has received the requisite license from the German Federal Aviation Office (LBA).

The recent certification amends the approval to perform overhaul work on the baseline A350-900, which was already received in 2018. With immediate effect, Lufthansa Technik Malta is hence also permitted to work on the stretched version of the twin-engine widebody. The necessary overhaul lines and docks were already adapted to the new subtype at the time of the earlier approval.

Marcus Motschenbacher, Chief Executive Officer of Lufthansa Technik Malta, said: "With this approval, we have further cemented our leading position as the only Airbus widebody overhaul site in the European Lufthansa Technik network. We are therefore very well positioned to provide long-term technical support for the entire A350 range. This is a great success for the Lufthansa Technik Group."

Already in 2018, more than 50 employees of Lufthansa Technik Malta attained the necessary qualifications and practical knowledge to work on the A350-900. These skills are now also being used to perform overhauls on the larger type. A total of more than 3 million dollars has been invested in the preparation for overhauls of both types, with the first three customers expected until the end of this year.

Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd. has become Lufthansa Technik's launching customer for base maintenance checks on the Boeing 787. At its Irish overhaul facility Lufthansa Technik Shannon Limited the last in a series of six contracted 787 airplanes was recently re-delivered to the airline. The scope of work for each aircraft included a C1-Check plus several modifications and additional repair work.

Philip Wardlaw, Vice President Engineering and Maintenance at Virgin Atlantic, commented: "Lufthansa Technik has been a reliable and trustworthy service partner to Virgin Atlantic for many years and this has now continued with the Boeing 787. We have been very impressed with the hard work, dedication and professionalism of the Lufthansa Technik Shannon team and the great teamwork shown between the two companies."

Thomas Rueckert, Senior Vice President Base Maintenance at Lufthansa Technik, said: "The successful completion of our first 787 base maintenance contract marks an extremely important milestone for our 787 service portfolio and a further expansion of our long standing relationship with Virgin Atlantic. We invested extensively in training, tooling and preparation for the arrival of the Boeing 787, and it certainly paid off as we achieved competitive turn-around times for these inputs. I would like to thank our employees at Lufthansa Technik Shannon for their dedication and commitment to making this a success."

Worldwide, Lufthansa Technik currently has more than 200 Boeing 787s from 15 customers under exclusive contract. The MRO provider has established a portfolio of globally available products and services to provide a comprehensive technical support for all commercial and VIP 787 operators and for all phases of the Dreamliner's life cycle. Besides line and heavy airframe maintenance, this includes integrated material support and composite repairs as well as landing gear services, an Aircraft Production Inspection Program and access to Lufthansa Technik's digital fleet solutions.

Airfoil Services Sdn Bhd (ASSB), a 50/50 joint venture between MTU Aero Engines AG and Lufthansa Technik AG, has broken ground on its facility extension. This expansion grows facility space by 5,200 square meters and will increase current repair capacity from 650,000 to 900,000 parts per year by 2020. This development underlines the shareholders' commitment to increasing its footprint and investing in Malaysia.

"There is significant market demand for airfoil repairs and we are delighted to be expanding the facility to cater to our customer's needs," commented Wim van Beers, Managing Director, ASSB. "ASSB's rapid growth not only brings investment to the region neighboring Kuala Lumpur, it also provides additional highly-skilled job opportunities to the local population." The company is planning to add another 200 jobs over the next three years, increasing the workforce to around 700 employees. Through its internally developed apprentice program, ASSB took on 124 local apprentices in 2018.

ASSB has seen great success since the company was founded in 1991. It boasts over 80 customers worldwide and provides a comprehensive range of airfoil repair services for high-pressure compressor (HPC) and low-pressure turbine (LPT) airfoils – for widebody and narrowbody engines such as the CF6-80C, GP7000 and the CFM56 and V2500 engine families. In the past two years alone, ASSB has seen 50% growth compared to 2016. The company is highly focused on research and development and has recently initiated several repair development projects for new generation airfoils to increase its product portfolio in the near future. 

MTU and Lufthansa Technik entered into the joint venture with the aim of providing their customers with the best possible airfoil services in the industry. Alongside repair development and baseload volume, the partners contribute knowledge, training and improved quality standards to the location.

The Lufthansa Technik Group is substantially increasing its commitment to training young people in Germany: 246 new traditional and dual-study trainees have joined the company – an increase of 55 percent over the previous year. And in view of the Group's positive economic development as well as the fact that many employees will soon reach retirement age, Lufthansa Technik has already decided to add a further 50 training slots in 2020. All told, Lufthansa Technik is now home to 616 young people on their way to professions in technical aircraft services, industrial engineering or aircraft logistics.

Given the increasingly narrow market, the company has already started the application process for 2020 at www.be-lufthansa.com/technik in an effort to reach young people who are personally and professionally suitable for the training slots on offer. In addition to proven measures, Lufthansa Technik is also using numerous new approaches to personnel marketing.

For example, in 2019, the company started running campaigns in Hamburg's subways and fast-food restaurants as well as innovative videos on its social media channels. With "We like to move it", Lufthansa Technik produced a video on its commitment to aircraft logistics that managed to go viral. In addition, the Group broadened its presence at trade fairs and intensified its cooperation projects with schools and universities.

In 2019, 135 young people will start their training in Hamburg, 78 in Frankfurt, 14 in Arnstadt, 14 in Alzey and five in Munich. Applicants were able to choose between 16 different professions and dual-study programs. Of the 246 new training and university slots, 186 are directly with Lufthansa Technik.

Lufthansa Technik AERO Alzey, the Lufthansa Technik Group company that focuses on overhauling smaller jet and propeller engines and is still growing strongly, has taken on 13 new aircraft mechanic trainees with a specialty in engine technology and one dual-study trainee with a specialty in mechanical engineering. The company is thus once again expanding its capacity, bringing the total to 39 slots.

Lufthansa Technik Logistik Services (LTLS) has 28 new trainees for the future-oriented profession of warehouse logistics specialist as well as two people training to become specialists for forwarding and logistics services. With a total of 83 training slots, Lufthansa Technik Logistik Services has the largest training program in the Lufthansa Technik Group aside from its parent company.

N3 Engine Overhaul Services, a 50:50 joint venture with Rolls-Royce in Arnstadt, Thuringia/Germany, is offering twelve aircraft mechanic trainees with a specialty in engine technology and two warehouse logistics specialists an exciting start to their careers. With a total of 46 trainees, N3 also plays an important role as a training company.

LEOS (Lufthansa Engineering and Operational Services) is giving two future mechatronics engineers the chance to join the leading provider of aircraft-related ground handling services.

The percentage of women among this year's new trainees stands at just over 12%, which is more than two percentage points above the previous year, but still too low. Lufthansa Technik will therefore persist in its efforts to attract women in particular to technical careers with a promising future.

Croatia Airlines has extended two long-standing contracts with Lufthansa Technik AG. The extended agreements cover the Airbus A320-family fleet of the state-owned airline of Croatia, which is currently operating six aircraft of this type. An existing Total Component Support (TCS®) contract was extended by seven years. At the same time, the contract covering auxiliary power unit (APU) services was extended by five years. Croatia Airlines will also become a user of Lufthansa Technik's digital platform AVIATAR.

Davor Bujan, Technical Director Croatia Airlines, commented on the contract extension: "Technical expertise has strongly contributed to Croatia Airlines being recognized as a safe air company. This cooperation expansion contract is another confirmation of the excellent relations between us and our long-standing partner, which I believe will develop further to the benefit of both parties."

Jens Henningsen, Senior Executive Corporate Sales Europe at Lufthansa Technik, said: "With the extended contracts, Croatia Airlines is once again expressing its long-standing trust in Lufthansa Technik. In 2017 we commemorated 25 years of corporation. We will continue working very closely together as partners to ensure the highest reliability, performance and safety."

Croatia Airlines will also benefit from AVIATAR, Lufthansa Technik's independent digital platform for the aviation industry. Using selected products and solutions, Croatia Airlines will see increased reliability and aircraft availability.

Lufthansa Technik has been a maintenance partner to Croatia Airlines since 1992, when the MRO provider started to support the Boeing 737 fleet of Croatia Airlines with an integrated Total Technical Support (TTS®) contract. In 1997, when Croatia Airlines' included its first Airbus A320 in its fleet, Lufthansa Technik was also chosen as a provider of TTS®. In addition, Croatia Airlines' Bombardier Q400 turboprops have been under a Total Component Support (TCS®) since 2008.

Today, the subject matter of the contract for the Airbus A319/A320 fleet covers a broad spectrum of component services, engine maintenance, support for Airframe Related Components (ARC®), and provision of auxiliary power units (APU).

The German armed forces (Bundeswehr) today received one of the most modern observation aircraft in the world for missions under the Treaty on Open Skies. In an official ceremony in Hamburg, Lufthansa Technik AG handed over the converted Airbus A319CJ to the German armed forces in the presence of Dr. Ursula von der Leyen, Federal Minister of Defence, and Niels Annen, Minister of State at the Federal Foreign Office. The aircraft is intended to fly missions within the framework of confidence-building measures but can also be used for medical and conventional passenger transport.

On the customer side, the conversion of the former business jet, which was completed on schedule and within budget, was overseen by the Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support (BAAINBw). As the general contractor and system integrator, Lufthansa Technik played the leading role in the construction and the development of suitable solutions in cooperation with more than a dozen industrial partners based on the requirements of the German armed forces.

Niels Annen, Minister of State at the Federal Foreign Office, said: "The Treaty on Open Skies is an indispensable pillar of arms control in the OSCE area. We are committed to ensuring that it continues to work despite some difficulties and is fully implemented by all parties. This way, the contract can create transparency and trust. The Treaty also shows that cooperation between Russia and the USA is still possible even when it comes to sensitive security issues. We want to strengthen the Treaty on Open Skies. That is why I am delighted that Germany is once again providing its own modern aircraft for overflights."

"I would like to thank our customer, the German armed forces, as well as our many industrial partners for their excellent cooperation on this formidable integration task and wish the German armed forces every success with this very special aircraft," said Dr. Johannes Bussmann, Chairman of the Executive Board of Lufthansa Technik AG. "Special thanks also go to our colleagues, who have done an outstanding job mastering this far from ordinary task."

During a 26-month layover at the Lufthansa base in Hamburg, the Airbus A319 was first given a complete overhaul and then received more than 150 modifications, ranging from the implementation of minor Airworthiness Directives to fundamental alterations of the aircraft's structure. The structural work included replacing a seven-meter-long part of the outer skin on the upper side of the fuselage as well as cutting openings out of the lower part of the fuselage and fitting them with glass to enable the use of observation and camera technology on Open Skies flights.

Besides the installation of a digital infrared sensor and digital optical camera systems for three different flight altitudes, the layover also comprised major modifications to the aircraft cabin. So that the aircraft can be used for its new purpose, the cabin was equipped with four ergonomic operating stations for the observation team, among other things. In the mission area, the aircraft has a further 16 seats for staff of the overflown state party as well as the staff of partner nations. To ensure that all systems can be accessed and inspected at any time and without great effort, the engineers have provided maintenance flaps and access doors throughout the cabin and its installations.

Three Supplemental Type Certificates were required for the approval: one each for the modification of the structure, the camera windows in the fuselage and the modification of the cabin and cockpit. The aircraft will be approved by both civil and military aviation authorities. Before it can be used for observation flights over other state parties, it must be accredited by all member states. Other countries will then also be able to rent the aircraft for their mission flights.

Images: Copyright Lufthansa Technik. Photographer: Jan Brandes

Meggitt PLC, a leading international company specialising in high performance components for the aerospace, defence and selected energy markets, and Lufthansa Technik AG, a world leader in maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services, have signed an agreement for the provision of comprehensive component MRO services for commercial aircraft in mainland China.

PARIS AIR SHOW –-June 19, 2019—GE Aviation and Lufthansa Technik AG enlarge their collaboration on Boeing 777X MRO services. The companies have signed a maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) agreement  under which Lufthansa Technik will be GE's authorized service provider for the backup generator/converter (BUG and BUC) and for certain Electrical Load Management Systems (ELMS) components on the new Boeing 777X aircraft. This long-term cooperation will cover the maintenance service offerings, warranty support and 24/7 asset exchange/loan services to worldwide 777X operators.

"We are pleased to enter into a long-term cooperation with Lufthansa Technik, a global world-class MRO and asset services provider. Lufthansa Technik is strategically positioned to support the 777X customers and our GE Power components with high-tech quality repairs and overhaul services.  Lufthansa Technik also brings a breadth of engineering expertise and extensive experience in maintaining civil electrical generators along with their global logistics network to provide seamless support to our mutual customers," said Joe Krisciunas, General Manager, GE Aviation's Electrical Power Systems.

Dr. Georg Fanta, Lufthansa Technik Vice President Aircraft Component Services stated, "This long-term agreement enhances Lufthansa Technik's position as a key MRO provider on 777X components.  I am very pleased that we could further extend the long-standing relationship between GE and Lufthansa Technik. Together, we will generate additional customer value by combining GE's vast experience in design and product engineering with Lufthansa Technik's comprehensive strengths in repair development, MRO, and the management and handling of valuable assets."

Lufthansa is currently one of the launch customers for the new Boeing 777X aircraft with 20 total aircraft ordered.  Boeing offers the 777X in several passenger aircraft configurations all powered by the GE9X engine.
Under the agreement, Lufthansa Technik will provide various 777X power component MRO services, including OEM approved repairs, warranty corrections and component modifications on behalf of GE.

Lufthansa Technik will also provide and maintain a global pool of spares to support AOG services and offer customers exchanges or loans while their GE power components are being repaired.  These serviceable spare components will be available to worldwide customers on a 24/7 support basis and be deployed in several stocking locations worldwide within Lufthansa Technik's vast global component supply network.

Image: Copyright GE Aviation