Hanoi (VNA) – Germany-based Lufthansa TechnikAG will provide maintenance services for the auxiliary power units (APUs) ofnational flag carrier Vietnam Airlines’ Airbus A350-900 fleet which areproduced by Honeywell.
The agreement came as part of a long-term contract inkedbetween the two firms on August 16, which is expected to back Vietnam Airlines’effort to improve technical efficiency and ensure safety for its flights.
Per the deal, Lufthansa Technik AG will providemaintenance services for ten APUs of the carrier’s fleet of A350-900 wide-bodyaircraft from 2018 to 2020.
Lufthansa Technik is the official warranty station andpartner of manufacturer Honeywell for the maintenance, repair and overhaul ofthe Honeywell APUs. Vietnam Airlines has put into use 12 A350-900 aircraftand is scheduled to operate two more in 2019.
Vietnam Airlines Director General Duong Tri Thanh saidhe believed Lufthansa Technik AG would ensure the smooth operation of VietnamAirlines’ Airbus A350 fleet. The contract would contribute to the expansion oflong-term cooperation in more areas between the two companies, he added.
Vietnam Airlines, a member of Skyteam Alliance, operates90 routes to 20 domestic and 29 international destinations with an average of400 flights per day. It owns a fleet of modern airplane models, including theBoeing 787 Dreamliner, Airbus A350-900 XWB, Airbus A330 and Airbus A321.
The carrier was certified as a 4-star airline by international air transportrating organisation Skytrax and listed as a top Asian airline in 2018 bytourism website Trip Advisor.
The firm saw a 87-percent surge in pre-tax profit in thefirst half of 2018, approximating 1.92 trillion VND (82.8 million USD), doubleits target. Last year, it posted impressive sales of 88.4 trillion VND andcarried 26.5 million passengers while its on-time performance index exceeded 90percent.
With 35 subsidiaries and affiliates, the LufthansaTechnik AG is one of the leading providers of technical aircraft services inthe world. Certified internationally as a maintenance, productionand design organisation, the company has a workforce of more than25,000 employees.
The firm’s portfolio covers the entire rangeof services for commercial and VIP/special mission aircraft,engines, components and landing gear in digital fleetsupport, maintenance, repair, overhaul, modification, completionand conversion as well as the manufacture of cabin products. –VNA