IAG Aero To Ramp Up CF6-80E Capabilities In Rome

Following the addition of repair tooling for the CFM56-7B engine in late 2022, IAG Aero now plans to introduce further capabilities for the CF6-80E engine at its Rome facility. It expects to have this in place by early Q2 2023 at the latest.

IAG Aero, which operates two sites in Miami and Rome, already has CF6-80E engine repair services on its capability list but told Aviation Week it is investing further to support broader workscopes. The engine type supports the Airbus A330, particularly on the cargo variant of the widebody aircraft.

Larry Serlo, chief commercial officer of IAG Aero, says this will allow for heavier visits in the Italian capitol. It has already made investments for the engine type and has nearly completed training for the additional services.

Currently, IAG Aero's capabilities in Rome include full services for CF6-50/-80C2 and CFM56-5B/-7B engines. At its U.S. site, it offers services for CFM56-5 and -7 variants, CF6-50/80C2, PW4000 and JT9D engines.

The company announced additions to its CFM56-7B repair tooling capability in November 2022 and completed the set-up process in the first quarter of 2023. From January onwards, IAG took delivery of all tooling, which then underwent receiving, inspection and inventorying processes before undergoing OEM licensing certification and approval from the regulator.

According to Serlo, the strength of recovery in the narrowbody aircraft market, for which the CFM56 is a primary engine option, contributed to its decision to implement further CFM56 capability. “The amount of -7Bs in commercial operation remains high, but we have also seen an uptick of 737 cargo conversions,” he says. “Therefore, we foresee the overall demand for -7B repair services to continue to be robust over the next several years.”

CFM56-5B inductions in Rome have primarily been quick turn, hospital visits, a factor Serlo believes is reflective of the surplus of green time engines in the market right now.

IAG is seeing an uptick in full widebody engine overhauls after the market was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic three years ago. Serlo says demand continues to be strong for the widebody engine types it supports, noting the CF6-80C2 and the PW4000-94 as the examples of this. 

“The workscopes for these engine models have also been for heavy maintenance events, especially for our IAG Engine Center USA facility in Miami,” he says. “Our IAG Engine Center Europe facility in Rome is seeing similar activity on heavy workscopes for the CF6.”

On the global supply chain challenges negatively impacting the industry, Serlo says the company has faced challenges especially relating to high scrap rate material that is consistently required to be replaced. 

“The result has been long lead times for new material from the OEMs,” Serlo says. “In addition, the availability of good life limited parts, especially in the core, continues to be limited on the CF6 and PW4000 platforms.”