France’s Aviation Maintenance Industry Growing Slowly

France’s aircraft maintenance industry is holding its own in these trying economic times.

The French maintenance industry has recently been hit by much bad news, which came in addition to (or as a consequence of) the current downturn in air transport. However, some companies are managing to climb a positive trend.

The spirits of many mechanics and maintenance technicians were hit hard on April 10, when Air France (simultaneously with British Airways) announced it would stop operating the supersonic Concorde. The French airline was to operate its last commercial flight with the only supersonic airliner in the world on May 31. As aviation enthusiasts, most maintenance people admired the "big white bird." Among them, the saddest were certainly the 145 still involved in Concorde’s line, light, or heavy maintenance.

"Structurally loss-making" operations since the July 25, 2000 Concorde crash caused both national flag carriers to decide to discontinue scheduled supersonic service between Europe and the U.S. Cited were higher maintenance costs and a significant decline in load factors since the fatal accident in Gonesse, near Paris Charles-de-Gaulle airport, almost two years ago, when 113 people died.

Yet, major modifications had been performed to get Concorde back into the air. According to the final report by the BEA (French accident-investigation bureau), a complex chain of events, that had begun with a tire burst, led to the accident. On November 7, 2001, the Concorde returned to commercial service. This was due to the unique job performed by British and French engineers and technicians. They performed modifications that were designed to prevent a similar accident from ever happening again. These changes included landing gear wheel well reinforcement, new Michelin tires, and fuel tank strengthening with Kevlar liners.

Air France Industries recently passed the 100 mark for maintenance of Airbus A330/A340 aircraft after signing further A330 support contracts. The latest were Star Airlines (component support, light, and heavy maintenance), Corsair (component support), Air Calin (engineering and component support), and MyTravel. Third-party contracts now account for more than 70 percent of the A330/A340 fleet that Air France Industries services, the company reported.

As Air France and Alitalia have gotten closer through a cross-equity shareholding, so do their maintenance arms. Air France Industries and Alitalia Engineering & Maintenance have just signed an industrial cooperation agreement based on a two-way exchange of workload. Air France Industries will be responsible for components, repair, and spares pooling for Alitalia’s Boeing 777 fleet. Alitalia Engineering & Maintenance will handle repair and overhaul for Air France’s 747 Classic APUs.

In June 2004, AFI’s component maintenance and repair operations will move from the present Orly facility to a new site at Villeneuve-le-Roi.

At the Paris Charles-de-Gaulle airport base, line maintenance employees have recently received a new tool. Thanks to a wireless radio link, up-to-date electronic documentation is now available in ground vehicles. The system will be extended to Paris Orly.

Snecma Services is growing, too. In 2002, 302 CFM56 engines entered the company’s workshops near Paris, a 6 percent increase over the 285 recorded in 2001. The company does not report its own financial figures, but one can say it does help its parent engine and equipment manufacturer Snecma to stay in the black.

Growth in services was almost the only positive figure in 2002 sales for Snecma. The group’s service businesses recorded sales of �2.275 billion during 2002, compared to �2.208 billion in 2001. These figures include spare parts and MRO sales at Snecma Services, Messier Services, Techspace Aero, and Turbomeca. Service businesses also took a higher share of consolidated group sales, rising from 32 percent of the total in 2001 to 35 percent last year.

Snecma Services said it has provided on-wing servicing for more than 500 aircraft engines in 2002, in line with business development objectives and 50 percent higher than in 2001. Recent contracts include engine maintenance agreements with SAS, Sterling European, Pegasus Airlines, and a VIP operator in the United Arab Emirates.

However, buying the remaining 50 percent of the joint venture Snecma Services had with now-defunct Sabena, in February of last year, cost a lot. In 2002, Snecma Services’s Brussels losses had a �58-million impact on the group’s earnings.

At Turbomeca, the helicopter engine specialist inside the Snecma group, 1,955 turboshaft engines were repaired, against 1,622 in 2001 (a 21- percent increase). Turbomeca is also trying to change the reputation of its customer support. The company says it has listened to customers and is implementing new or strengthened services. Dubbed "More," the newly launched initiative is four-fold and consists of redefining the field representatives’ role, improving their back office support, establishing new regional service facilities, and setting up rapid dispatch field technician teams. The France-based firm claims 2,000 customers, representing 13,000 helicopter engines in service (see AM, May 2003).

In recent months, maintenance provider TAT Industries has added several new capabilities. "We can now service the new generation of Boeing 737s, either at our Dinard base or our Nîmes base," said Jean-Luc Fournel, marketing director. C-checks have already been performed. In April, TAT technicians completed their first C-check on a Boeing 757, a British Airways airplane. French charter operator Aeris has taken delivery of its A-checked 767, the first, too, for TAT. In addition, a number of military contracts have been signed or renewed with the French state.

The collapse of Air Lib Technics, induced by that of parent airline Air Lib, has left some 300 maintenance workers unemployed. The French government has promised every effort will be made to find a new job for each of these 300. French state-controlled companies, such as Paris public transportation operator RATP, national train operator SNCF, and Air France have promised they would participate. France’s main airline is talking about 1,000 new jobs, including maintenance specialists, by early 2004. Air Lib, which long tried to find a viable strategy in the French market, became unable to pay its taxes, national insurance contributions, and airport fees in 2002. Dutch group Imca mulled taking over the airline late last year but finally left the game in January of this year. Air Lib ceased operations in early February. It is now undergoing liquidation.

Some portions of the maintenance sector are feeling a shortage of maintenance workers. "Executive charter operators are finding it very difficult to find good mechanics and technicians," Olivier de l’Estoile, president of the French chapter of the European Business Aviation Association, told AM.

In the light aviation segment, flying clubs are facing a serious problem with their workhorse, the Robin DR400 four-seater. The French equivalent of the NTSB for aviation safety, the Bureau Enquêtes Accidents (BEA), has demonstrated that at least one fatal crash was caused by failure of the main wing spar. It is believed several other accidents had the same origin. After an exhaustive probe of the in-service fleet, BEA investigators found that a number of spars had not been properly assembled. It appeared the required glue on part of the airframe had been poorly applied.

The DR400’s airframe is made of wood. This technology relies widely on the craftsman’s knowledge. Significant numbers of skilled workers left the company in the 1990s, after the Chauffour group bought Avions Robin. It has since been taken over by Guy Pellissier, today’s CEO. In 2000, the name of the company was changed to Apex, although the Robin brand remains.

This failure in producing safe spars led the French civil aviation authority, (DGAC), to release five airworthiness directives, calling for inspections of the wing’s structure on some 1,300 aircraft. Bonding flaws have been found on more than 10 aircraft so far. Flying clubs are concerned that this could have a negative impact on the confidence pilots should have in the aircraft they fly. About 30 percent of the 600 French flying clubs’ fleet include DR400s, some 800 aircraft out of 2,600.

The first solution the DGAC and the airframer came up with implied tearing off the aft portion (web) of the spar. Several wings were mended this way. However, it was decided this method was too risky. If the spar wasn’t perfectly reassembled, the solution would have been worse than the initial problem.

The latest solution the authorities approved starts with making several holes in the spar. Glue is then added in the assembly, before the holes are closed up. Special temperature and hygrometry conditions must be met. Apex is currently readying technical documents for maintenance workshops. The latter will have to obtain an approval from the DGAC if they want to perform the repair.