Lufthansa Technik (LHT) has signed new service agreements at the Dubai Airshow with Dubai-based airline Emirates and Saudia Technic, partner of the national airline of Saudi Arabia, Saudia, based in Jeddah.
LHT and Emirates have signed a base maintenance services (BMS) contract for Airbus A380 aircraft. By October 2026, another 23 of the world's largest passenger aircraft will undergo C-checks performed by Lufthansa Technik Philippines (LTP) in Manila. With the agreement now signed, the Dubai-based airline is once again entrusting heavy checks for this fleet type from its own in-house MRO capacities to LHT. Lufthansa Technik's competence centre for base maintenance services on the double-decker long-haul aircraft in Manila has already carried out several heavy checks for Emirates' A380s since January this year.
As soon as the ten A380s covered by the very first agreement have undergone the checks, the additional 23 aircraft will follow. By October 2026, LTP will have performed base maintenance checks for 33 Emirates' Airbus, which is over a quarter of the world's largest A380 fleet. To cope with the significantly increased demand for MRO services on the world's largest commercial airliner type, LTP has invested in additional A380 overhaul capacities. Due to the expanded MRO infrastructure such as the construction of a new 9,000 m² hangar, three of these superjumbos can be overhauled at the same time in Manila.
Furthermore, Saudia Technic and Lufthansa Technik signed a ten-year total component support (TCS) contract at the Dubai Airshow, focusing on Saudia's Airbus fleet. This collaboration builds on Lufthansa Technik's ongoing provision of components to Saudia's Boeing fleet since the beginning of this year. In a notable expansion of their partnership, the companies are introducing a joint training programme starting in January 2024. The now concluded TCS contract encompasses 53 Airbus A320 and 31 A330 aircraft. For all of them, Saudia Technic gains 24/7 access to Lufthansa Technik's global component pool. The TCS includes an aircraft on ground (AOG) support that guarantees shortest possible delivery for time-critical components. The agreement will significantly strengthen Saudia Technic's technical operations and complement its own resources. Lufthansa Technik already supports 39 Boeing 777 (35 777-300ERs and four 777Fs) as well as 18 Boeing 787 aircraft (13 787-9s and five 787-10s).
