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MRO services in Africa and the Middle East: a recovery dampened by supply chain issues

MRO Market

MRO services in Africa and the Middle East: a recovery dampened by supply chain issues

After two years of the health crisis, the time seems right for air traffic to pick up again in the Africa/Middle East region. However, the zone’s recovery has struggled to gain pace, hampered by ongoing health restrictions in certain countries and the pressure being felt throughout global supply chains. In order to help its customers get the most out of this emergent recovery, AFI KLM E&M maintains a singular focus: adapting its solutions in order to optimize maintenance costs without impacting service quality. For an overview of the situation, we spoke to Aymeric Méchin, VP Sales Middle East and Africa at AFI KLM E&M.

While no airline in the Africa/Middle East zone was spared the effects of the crisis, those which serve as hubs and connect to the most tourism-reliant countries were hit worst by the strict health protocols applied. In Africa, the non-tourism travel sector proved to be more resilient.

“Many operators took advantage of the crisis to reconfigure their fleets, retiring older aircraft such as the A340. They pushed back their heavy maintenance operations, and were also able to benefit by postponing previously scheduled engine removals thanks to the extra green time available, or by using engines from grounded aircraft which still had flight cycles available before their next maintenance operation.”

Aymeric Méchin

VP Sales Middle East and Africa at AFI KLM E&M

Minimizing maintenance costs

During this period, AFI KLM E&M has remained in close contact with its customers and receptive to the issues they are facing. AFI KLM E&M has adapted its responses, constantly seeking to find the best available solution from a technical, economic and engineering perspective. The goal: minimizing customers’ maintenance costs without impacting operations or quality of service.

“We’ve streamlined our maintenance services, favouring on-wing and on-site operations over traditional repairs in our own workshops. These operations have been highly appreciated by our clients, as even the slightest transport savings will have a positive effect on their primary concern: keeping costs down.”

Aymeric Méchin

VP Sales Middle East and Africa at AFI KLM E&M

Planning for fleet renewal

Today, the time seems right for air traffic to return to normal in Africa and the Middle East, yet figures remain well below their pre-crisis levels. While certain aircraft are still grounded (notably those used to fly long-haul routes into Asia), flight plans are gradually picking up again as health restrictions are lifted. Growth is occurring faster in the Middle East than in Africa, buoyed notably by the arrival of new-generation aircraft.

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“Some orders which have been postponed due to the crisis, are now being reactivated – this can be seen with the integration of state-of-the-art aircraft such as the A220, the A320neo or the 737 MAX growing. The fuel price and sustainability challenges are also explaining why some airlines are announcing or preparing some fleet renewals”

Aymeric Méchin

VP Sales Middle East and Africa at AFI KLM E&M

However, the optimism that currently prevails among African and Middle-Eastern airlines is overshadowed (as is the case all over the world) by the underlying supply chain crisis and the risk of a global shortage in spare parts.

Repair rather than replacement

As the recovery finds its feet, heavy shop visits on engines are once again on the cards, but remain limited since the availability of green time allows them to be put off until a later date. To support the recovery, AFI KLM E&M continues to apply its strategy of “repairing rather than replacing wherever possible”, while also demonstrating maximum flexibility in order to adapt to its clients’ financial constraints and the lack of parts availability. In order to do so, AFI KLM E&M can draw upon a number of proven assets such as its extensive logistical networks, with maintenance centers positioned within geographical proximity to its customers: in the Africa/Middle East zones, AFI KLM E&M can look to the affiliates operating within its global MRO network, such as ATI in Casablanca (a joint-venture with Royal Air Maroc) for narrow-body aircraft maintenance, or the AMES aerostructures maintenance center (a joint venture with Safran Nacelles) in Dubai, which is readily adapted to handle large-scale components and allows for a maximum number of parts to be stored in the region.

More information about AMES

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AFI KLM E&M always remains proactive in partnering with other MRO actors in order to bring value and services to our customers. Being part of the Air France-KLM group is also a key competitive advantage in terms of ensuring the availability of spares, and getting parts dispatched to the right place at the right time thanks to its large network of destinations.

Value-creating innovation

AFI KLM E&M is well positioned to support the arrival of new-generation aircraft, with proven expertise in both component support and the process of bringing planes into active service. It is also leaning into its capacity for innovation in order to optimize maintenance costs for its clients.

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“We offer predictive maintenance services in order to anticipate breakdowns and avoid non-scheduled removals for grounded aircraft. With engine products, for example, pre-empting removals means preventing significant and often extremely costly defects. We also use augmented reality to train our mechanics, drones to inspect aircraft structure, and Virtual Table Inspection (VTI) to enable our customers to remotely visualize their parts in our workshops, without having to travel there in person.”

Aymeric Méchin

Sales Middle East and Africa at AFI KLM E&M.

More information about Predictive Maintenance

Promising horizons

Confident in the recovery of air travel in Africa and the Middle East, AFI KLM E&M holds all the cards necessary to support operators in the region.

“We’re ready to support new-generation products and existing fleets, with innovative solutions adapted to the needs of our clients. In the current context, we remain more mobilized than ever regarding the environmental objectives Air France-KLM Group has set itself: achieving zero net CO2 emissions in our ground operations by 2030. Using greener energy for maintenance operations, repairing parts rather than replacing them, dealing with aircraft or sub-assemblies on-site wherever possible, etc.: these are just some of the initiatives that contribute to the virtuous environmental dynamic in aviation, made possible by optimally designed maintenance services.”

Aymeric Méchin

Sales Middle East and Africa at AFI KLM E&M.