Air Baltic has yet to decide how it will conduct airframe maintenance for its Bombardier CS300 fleet.
The Latvian carrier has contracted Bombardier to provide component support through the airframer’s Smart Parts aftermarket programme, while the aircraft’s Pratt & Whitney PW1500G geared turbofans will be serviced by the engine manufacturer.
Air Baltic chief executive Martin Gauss said at a media briefing in Riga today that the airline is considering different airframe maintenance options as it still has “a little time” before heavy checks will be necessary for its CS300 fleet.
The first of 20 on-order CS300s arrived at Air Baltic's Riga base on 30 November. The rest are scheduled to follow by 2019
He adds that Air Baltic is evaluating co-operation with CSeries launch operator Swiss – the only other airline employing the type today – in the area of technical support as both carriers are located in Europe.
“I think [Swiss parent] Lufthansa is doing a lot of things," he says, but adds that “other players are ramping up on that, and then we will decide”.
Swiss too has opted to use Bombardier’s component support programme. But the Alpine carrier’s PW1500Gs will be serviced through a new jointly operated engine shop between Lufthansa Technik and GTF programme partner MTU.
Air Baltic trains CS300 pilots at simulators operated by Lufthansa’s flight training arm.
Gauss says that Air Baltic has “good relations” with Swiss and that Bombardier has fostered partnerships between the CSeries operators.
Source: Cirium Dashboard
