A C-Check is the technical jargon used for a service, similar to that carried out by mechanics on a normal car, to which aeroplanes are subjected every 15 to 18 months. The service includes a corrosion prevention programme, as well as special comprehensive checks on the aircraft’s electronics and engines.
The company, which began its operations in Malta on 2 January 2003, throughout its business plan targeted to reach the 100 C-Checks by the end of 2004. The company was set up to offer maintenance, repair and overhaul
services to airlines.
The 100th C-Check is being carried out on an airbus owned by Spanair, and is expected to be completed tomorrow after four days. Sixty-three of the 100 airliners serviced by Lufthansa Technik were owned by parent company Lufthansa. Other customers included Travel Service (Czech Republic), Windjet (Italy), Air Bulgaria and Alitalia.
The company was at present negotiating with other airlines.
Speaking during a visit to the company yesterday, Investments Minister Austin Gatt said the only way to describe Lufthansa Technik is ‘a success story’ in view of the extremely
positive results it has obtained in the few months it has been in operation.
He said something that was even more important is that 116 of its 118-man workforce are Maltese. He said the company was living proof of the confidence foreign investors have in Malta and its qualified people.
Dr Gatt said his presence there was a clear sign that the government intended to continue investing in the company, through Air Malta.
Meanwhile, during the past few months, Lufthansa Technik Malta broadened its portfolio with additional services such as cabin modifications. Spanair, for example, had its moveable class-dividers in 10 of its A320s lengthened, which makes the aircraft more flexible when dividing the cabin between business and economy class.
Moreover, apart from aircraft maintenance in Frankfurt, Germany, Lufthansa Technik Malta also carried out cockpit door modifications for a customer at Brussels International Airport.