Air Austral has extended a component support contract with Air France Industries KLM Engineering & Maintenance (AFI KLM E&M) covering its fleet of three A220 aircraft.

The terms of the long-term contract include parts availability and repair, as well as engineering support and adaptive services management.

AFI KLM E&M’s Middle East & Africa vice president of sales Aymeric Mechin said: “We designed this offer to free Air Austral from as many constraints as possible. Availability, including 7/24/365 AOG support, remains a key success factor in ensuring day-to-day operations, but we are going further with dedicated engineering management that is as close as possible to Air Austral’s needs.”

AFI KLM E&M has set up a specific industrial scheme for A220 component support based on its current in-house repair capabilities, as well as the continuous development of new repairs.

The agreement with Air Austral also includes a turnkey service, which has been put in place in addition to repairs per flight hour, access to the spare parts pool and the provision of a local stock of components.

Air Austral’s executive vice president of operations and maintenance Benoît Schafer said: “When it comes to maintenance, AFI KLM E&M is a long-standing partner of Air Austral that we know we can rely on.

“The introduction of a new aircraft is always a job but also an operational challenge for an airline. With the A220 and the AFI KLM E&M support, we can focus on our operations and meet the challenges of today and tomorrow.”