Julian Moxon/PARIS
Air France Industries (AFI) is talking to Delta Air Lines about a joint maintenance venture, and is looking to Europe and Asia for other deals.
Delta and Air France - partners in an emerging global alliance - are major Boeing 777 operators, and the planned venture would create the world's largest maintenance operation of this type.
Delta would add its 737 and 767 capability to the entity, as would AFI, together with its extensive Airbus repair business. The two are also involved in maintaining CFM International engines, while Delta also specialises in high-thrust Pratt &Whitney powerplants and AFI in the GE CF6-80.
"We want to grow our engine business from 310 units a year to 400," say the French company.
Now in its "very early stages", a deal would catapult Delta into a global third-party market from which it has been virtually absent. AFI is one of the largest third-party providers. It says it holds a 15% share of the global market (excluding Air France), with total sales of Fr9.6 billion ($1.4 billion) in 1999. It claims leadership in A340 maintenance - customers include Virgin Atlantic Airways, Air Mauritius, Sabena and TAP Air Portugal - and 10% of A320 maintenance, which it aims to increase.
AFI is also pushing its 767 business. The company recently signed a contract with potential airline ally Aeroflot to maintain four of its new aircraft.
Patrick Delaunay, AFI's general manager, marketing, says a change from public to private ownership has meant "a big change in mentality in the last five years. We're concentrating much more on customer support for third parties and on providing turnkey support."
AFI is also targeting a joint venture with China Eastern (an Air France codeshare partner), to be based in Shanghai. Talks with an "independent" avionics centre are also under way.
Source: Flight International
