EgyptAir In Talks To Form Engine Maintenance JV

EgyptAir Maintenance & Engineering is looking to form a joint venture (JV) with an undisclosed Middle East engine specialist, forming part of the group’s new five-year strategy.

“We are thinking about JVs for our subsidiaries,” EgyptAir chairman and CEO Yehia Zakaria told Aviation Week Network during a one-on-one interview in Cairo. “We are talking now with somebody about maintenance.”

Zakaria is an engineer with nearly 40 years’ experience. He headed EgyptAir’s MRO business until he was promoted to lead the group in 2022.

EgyptAir’s European Union Aviation Safety Agency and FAA certified MRO facilities include widebody and narrowbody heavy maintenance and an engine shop, attracting third-party customers from Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Zakaria noted that there is strong demand for engine work all over the world, and very few slots available, triggering EgyptAir to negotiate an engine maintenance partnership.

“It is one of the very famous MROs in the engine business, in the Middle East,” he said. “Once we have started, we have a plan to continue for the first five years. We can see the first milestones.”

However, the JV is yet to be finalized. “We are still talking,” Zakaria said, noting that EgyptAir does not have any existing engine partnerships.

The engine JV forms part of EgyptAir’s latest five-year plan, which has just been finalized. “We’ve got the outline—the vision, the goals and the initiatives that we want to meet,” Zakaria said.

Under the five-year plan, which will run from 2025-29, EgyptAir is looking to grow its fleet from 65 to 125 aircraft. However, Zakaria is concerned this might only reach 100-110 because of aircraft delivery delays.

“When I go to the OEM, the airplane manufacturer, they cannot provide me with any time of delivery or any schedules. So, that's why it's very difficult to implement the strategic plan,” he said.

In response, Zakaria is planning to issue a request for proposals for “maybe 20” leased aircraft. He is also negotiating the firming of some Airbus A350 options and looking to buy “a small number” of widebodies from Boeing.

EgyptAir currently flies to 83 international and seven domestic destinations. By 2029, the network is slated to grow to 100 destinations, doubling passenger numbers from 11 to 22 million.