Pratt & Whitney: China's Ameco to board the GTF MRO network
Romain Guillot
 le 24/09/2020 , Maintenance aéronautique
Definitely, the GTF MRO network is expanding fast. Aircraft Maintenance and Engineering Corporation (Ameco), a joint venture formed by Air China (75%) and Lufthansa Technik (25%), will be the tenth player in the world to be able to provide engine maintenance services on Pratt & Whitney's high-bypass geared turbofan engine.
Ameco's engine shop in Beijing will work on the PW1100G-JM (A320neo family), the implementation of this new capability being announced for the end of the year.
"We, along with our colleagues at International Aero Engines, LLC, are focused on adding world-class capacity to continue to service our GTF customers as the engine fleet continues to grow and we emerge from the COVID-19 crisis," said Dave Emmerling, vice president, Commercial Aftermarket at Pratt & Whitney. "With Ameco, we welcome an experienced and capable provider that is willing to invest and grow with the network. Ameco's facility will become the first GTF MRO network shop in China, marking a significant milestone as we continue to support our growing fleet and customers in the region."
Ameco will be the fourth MRO in Asia to be able to provide maintenance and repairs to GTF engines, alongside Pratt & Whitney's Eagle Services Asia in Singapore, as well as IHI and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Aero Engines (MHIAEL) in Japan.
Pratt & Whitney points out that China alone is already lining up a fleet of 140 Airbus A320neo family aircraft equipped with GTFs at 11 airlines. Air China has been the operator of the PW1100G-JM itself since November 2017, with a fleet of 36 aircraft in service today: 25 A320neos and 9 A321neos.
Pratt & Whitney GTF global network was enriched by the arrival of Delta TechOps in the first half of the year, the maintenance division of the American airline having just completed a comprehensive maintenance visit of a PW1100G-JM engine at its Technical Operations Center in Atlanta in late August.
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