Pratt & Whitney is offering more immediate in-region line maintenance services for Asia Pacific-based GTF and V2500 engine operators as a result of its Shanghai Engine Center receiving new certification.

Technicians at the centre were given training by the Pratt & Whitney Line Maintenance Services team in Dallas. They have now received approval from the Civil Aviation Administration of China for the Pratt & Whitney GTF engine, following certification received to provide extensive V2500 line maintenance services in the summer of 2021.

Shanghai Engine Center is a joint venture between Pratt & Whitney and China Eastern.

Xinglai Gao is one of the mechanics working at Shanghai Engine Center (since 2009) to have received the line maintenance training. He has particularly focused on borescope inspection over the last four years. “Product safety and customer happiness are two critical aspects that drive technician performance,” he said. “Having technicians who are ready to dispatch and deploy, dependably, from both ends of the world only helps increase our proximity to customers. Faster care means less downtime, more flight time and strengthened customer relationships.”

Gao added: “Aircraft engines are the pearl of the aviation industry. I studied aircraft maintenance in school – everything from mechanics to electrical systems to hydraulics. Each day I come to work I continue to build upon those skills and marry them with Pratt & Whitney’s OEM expertise. It is really cool to know that I am one of the faces behind dependable flight.”

Complementing the Shanghai Engine Center, there are three active GTF MRO network shops in the region, including Pratt & Whitney Eagle Services Asia in Singapore, IHI Corporation in Japan and MTU Maintenance Zhuhai in China.