Maintenance Mitigates Avia Loss
Avia Solutions Group has reported a significant rise in its maintenance segment revenue, following equally impressive growth last year.
Avia Solutions Group has reported a significant rise in its maintenance segment revenue, following equally impressive growth last year.
Support services revenue from external customers, which stem from MRO, ground support and training services, rose 21% in the first half of 2024 to €364 million ($405 million). Net profit leapt from €12 million to €41 million year on year, although only about half of that flowed from third-party business.
This was important because although Avia’s core product of wet-lease, charter and cargo aircraft provision recorded a big jump in sales to €833 million, that segment suffered an operating loss of €24 million for the first six months of 2024.
Dublin-headquartered Avia Solutions Group owns MRO provider FL Technics, whose acquisitions in recent years include Canada-based Wright International in 2020 and its Storm Aviation subsidiary acquiring UK-based Chevon Technical Services in 2021.
Recently it revealed plans to open a new wheels and brakes facility in Milan, Italy, and is considering expanding its engine services, which currently center on a CFM56 quick-turn facility in Kaunas, Lithuania.
Since 2019, FL Technics has grown from four hangars to six, and increased its line stations from 49 to 70.
It also plans to open a six-bay heavy maintenance facility for narrowbodies in Indonesia, and taken on a five-bay hangar in the Dominican Republic.
Furthermore, FL Technics Hong Kong and partners have established FL ARI Aircraft Maintenance & Engineering China, which provides aircraft maintenance services in China.
These ventures are part of a strategy to develop a counter-cyclical demand stream to offset the slow summer maintenance period in Avia’s core market of Europe, which account for about half of group revenues.
