Ural Airlines, the sixth largest carrier in Russia, and Lufthansa Technik, the leading provider for maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) of airplanes, components and engines, signed a technical support agreement for the new Airbus A320-200 fleet. The initial two Airbus aircraft will join Ural Airlines' fleet in September and will be complemented by an additional four A320 in 2007.
Over the next five years Lufthansa Technik will serve the fleet of all together six Airbus A320-200 airplanes via a Total Component Support TCS contract with the provision of components at the carrier's hub Yekaterinburg-Koltsovo Airport. The contract enables Ural Airlines to participate in one of the world's largest pools for aircraft components whereof more than 500 different part numbers of LRUs (Line Replaceable Unit) have been pre-selected. The contract comprises as well of Lufthansa Technik's Airframe Related Component ARC services, which cover MRO support for composite materials like thrust reversers.
"Soon Ural Airlines will be entering a new and challenging chapter in its 13 years of operation within the aviation industry, and not only our young and efficient Airbus fleet will contribute to our future success but also the experienced and highly reliable services of Lufthansa Technik. Their technical expertise and local presence will support our A320 entry-into-service and strengthen our power to compete in a fast-growing market," said Vladimir Chikilev, Deputy Director, Ural Airlines, during the contract signing ceremony in Moscow.
"We greatly appreciate the trust Ural Airlines is placing in us and our strong record of supporting start-up operations around the world. We are very excited to become their partner for Total Component Support TCS which brings scale effects and savings of big fleets to operators of smaller or new fleets," said Walter Heerdt, Senior Vice President Marketing & Sales, Lufthansa Technik AG. "Today, we are looking forward to expand our component support across the Ural and become an even more important partner in technical servicing to airlines operating western-built aircraft in Russia and the CIS."
Since the 1990s Lufthansa Technik supports not only the daily operation but especially the phase-in of western-built airplanes like the Airbus A310 & A320 family and Boeing 737, 757, 767 & 777 to various carriers in the region. "On the basis of our existing partnerships - and of course for new start-up airlines and fast growing carriers - we are ready to give further support to an aviation market that is bound to grow in the course of the coming decade. Our commitment to the region will stay strong and back up the striving for a higher degree of self-sufficiency," said Dmitri Zaitsev, Regional Director Eastern Europe and CIS of Lufthansa Technik.
Lufthansa Technik's enduring market success in Eastern Europe and the CIS has been due not only to its work quality and close partnerships but also to the fact that it has locally available representatives in Moscow and Tashkent. Especially services out of the "T-product family" like Total Engine Support TES, Total Component Support TCS and Total Technical Support TTS are very popular with Russian carriers.
