Air France-KLM and Airbus have entered into exclusive negotiations to create a joint venture dedicated to the maintenance of Airbus A350 equipment on the basis of shared stock.
Maintenance focused on Airbus A350 equipment
Air France-KLM and Airbus entered “in exclusive negotiations with a view to establishing a joint venture for the global provision of maintenance services for Airbus A350 equipment (supply chain management, repairs, creation of a shared global stock of equipment)”. “The envisaged cooperation would take the form of a joint venture (joint venture) at 50-50 between Air France and Airbus and would involve the transfer of certain aircraft equipment held by the two partners into the shared stock of the joint venture.
Stock sharing and optimized commercial offer
“This joint venture, combining the expertise of Air France Industries KLM Engineering & Maintenance and Airbus, would enable the establishment of an optimized commercial offer between , aimed at best responding to the growing long-term maintenance needs of the global Airbus A350 fleet (more than 1,000 aircraft on order and 550 currently in service worldwide) thanks to increased capacity, an expanded global presence and the development of innovative solutions, for the benefit of customers”, underlines the Air France-KLM press release.
Operational from the first half of 2024
Airbus and Air France-KLM are clearly in a hurry since “The aim is for the joint venture to be operational in the first half of 2024, in accordance with all compliance requirements and subject to approval by all relevant authorities.” “This project aims to bring our customers the best of the expertise of our two companies on a product as technical as the A350. We will thus be able to better respond to market needs and guarantee the satisfaction of our customers in the long term, with particularly responsive, high-quality support solutions at the right price”, comments Anne Brachet, Deputy General Director of Air France-KLM Engineering & Maintenance.
Cristina Aguilar, Customer Services Director at Airbus adds: “Our business is to offer the best service to our customers. As the global A350 fleet grows, so do the support needs. Air France-KLM Engineering & Maintenance and Airbus have a long-standing relationship and Pooling our A350 equipment skills and capabilities will improve service for our customers.”
