Air France Industries KLM Engineering & Maintenance Signs Components Contract with Spring Airlines

AFI KLM E&M Components China, a subsidiary based in Shanghai, will support numerous A320 component references for the Chinese company.

Paris, Amstelveen, Shanghai, 31 May 2018 - Spring Airlines, China's leading low-cost airline, has signed a long-term contract with AFI KLM E&M for the exclusive support of many of the components in its A320 fleet. The contract on a "power by the hour" (PBH) basis covers many references mainly in the avionics field. In order to optimize Spring Airlines' operations, which currently has 78 A320s in its fleet, repairs will be carried out in "closed loop" mode by the specialized subsidiary AFI KLM E&M Components China in its Shanghai workshop, close to Spring Airlines' bases at the two Shanghai's airports.

Expertise and proximity
AFI KLM E&M Components China, a wholly-owned subsidiary of AFI KLM E&M, was launched in 2013, with avionics components repair as its initial activity. AFI KLM E&M Components China was certified by the CAAC in November of the same year, then obtained EASA Part 145 approval in 2015, and an FAA 145 repair station license in 2017. Offering repair capabilities and logistics services for a wide range of components for the Airbus A320 and A330 fleets, as well as for the Boeing 737, AFI KLM E&M Components China also has 777, 787 and A350 repair capabilities under development. AFI KLM E&M Components China also benefits from the expertise and resources of AFI KLM E&M's extensive global MRO network.

At the signing of this contract, Wang Yu, Chairman of Spring Airlines, said: "We appreciated the quality and competitiveness of AFI KLM E&M's offer, as well as the flexibility of its PBH model. Given its reputation in the global MRO market and the proximity offered by its Shanghai facility, we have full confidence in AFI KLM E&M's ability to meet our expectations."

Paul Sun, CEO of AFI KLM E&M Components China, commented: "We are very proud of the trust Spring Airlines has placed in our services with this major, long-term contract. It marks a key step in the development of our workshop for companies in China and Asia. We will be committed to putting all of AFI KLM E&M's expertise to work for Spring Airlines' operational performance".