Third party line maintenance of aircraft biz yet to gain traction

Chennai/ Bangalore : Air Works, an independent aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) company, may not be finding it a cakewalk in the Third Party Line Maintenance (TPLM) business as many airlines insist on doing it themselves.
Third Party Line Maintenance (TPLM) is a function performed by an external agency other than the airline or the airport for aircraft checks at airports after an aircraft lands and before it takes off on next flight. In the present scenario this function is performed solely by the airlines or through affiliated airlines with no other available options.
“There is a reluctance on the part of airlines to outsource the line maintenance. Airlines are committing hara kiri with their intran-sigence and insisting on doing the job themselves, leading to higher overheads,” said an aviation analyst.
K V Krishnan, V-P (airline MRO), Air Works, said each airline needs to have at least one engineer and one or two mechanics in addition to any other personnel who may be required and of course, an office. But, with DGCA stipulations stating that the shift should change every eight hours, it can mean a major cost on the human resources front for the airlines.
30/12/11 Praveen Bose/Business Standard

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Categories: Indian Aviation- In General Dec 2011