Maintaining top standard

JOB AIR TECHNIC I PROFILE

JOB AIR Technic, a leading MRO operator based in the Czech Republic, has not only withstood the challenges of a global pandemic that has crippled the aviation industry, but has also expanded both its offering and its customer base. Romana Moares reports.

The Covid-19 years have profoundly changed the aviation landscape. The pandemic has brought about not only challenges but also opportunities, to be grasped by those flexible and lean enough to shift attention to new market needs.

One such company is JOB AIR Technic, the Czech MRO provider, that has managed to survive the difficult years unscathed under its competent management, and with a clear view of the way forward.

“The fact that a substantial part of our business was based on cooperation with large leasing companies – the owners of some 70% of the global fleet – proved to be a clear advantage. Some of the grounded aircraft were gradually placed in our facility, and today we have over 40 machines parked here,” said CEO Vladimír Stulancˇák.

As operators push to be ready for the summer season, with the hope of recovering some of their losses incurred over the past two years, JOB AIR Technic is enjoying a very busy period.

“We are fully booked, with no slots available for the next few months,” he said, adding that the company’s supply chain has remained more or less robust, albeit with increased material prices.

“We strive to offer maximum flexibility to meet any client’s requirement, and our reputation is sound. The aircraft just have to be maintained, and the sheer breadth of our services has proved to be a clear advantage, much valued by our clients.”

Four decades of excellence

Founded in 1993 to serve as a maintenance centre for small civil aircraft manufactured by the Czech company LET, JOB AIR achieved its first major milestone in 2004, becoming an EASA/FAA Part 145 approved maintenance organisation and Part 147 and Part 66 approved training organisation.

Another milestone came in 2008 when a new maintenance facility was commissioned, which is today one of the biggest single-span maintenance hangars in central Europe. Soon after the new hangar was built, JOB AIR Technic acquired the necessary approvals for maintenance of Boeing 737s and Airbus 320s and 330s. Establishing a partnership with a paint unit in 2012 has made JOB AIR a one-stop shop, significantly enhancing its competitive advantage.

In 2017, the business was acquired by Czechoslovak Group (CSG), a holding company with firm roots in the Czech and

JOB AIR TECHNIC I PROFILE

Slovak industrial tradition, operating in the engineering, automotive, rail, aviation and defence industries.

Under new management, the company was restructured and investments were made in order to boost its position in the region, including the construction of a new hangar with a capacity of two narrow-body aircraft. Combined, the two hangars can house eight narrow-body aircraft at any one time, or alternatively, two wide-body and two narrow-body craft, making it one of the largest aircraft maintenance/repair hangars in Central and Eastern Europe.

Although the full spectrum of aircraft maintenance is JOB AIR’s core business, the company also offers cabin reconfiguration and aircraft conversion, as well as additional services such as logistics – full supply chain solutions encompassing parts, consumables, chemicals, and component exchange and repair, as well as painting.

Lean and flexible

Today, JOB AIR Technic continues to be based at Ostrava Airport, and operates as one of the largest aircraft maintenance and repair facilities in central Europe. The company is an EASA Part 145 and FAA approved maintenance centre and EASA Part 147 and Part 66 approved mechanic training organisation for Boeing 737 CL and NG, and Airbus A318, A319, A320 and A321. The company is also certified to provide maintenance of Boeing 737 CL,

737 NG and 737 MAX models, the Airbus A320 CEO and NEO family and Airbus A330. This capability has recently been further expanded.

The global pandemic has not shaken the company’s position, reaffirmed Mr Stulancˇák, who himself joined JOB AIR in 2019.

“In early 2020, we were planning to increase staff numbers to meet rising demand. Although implementation of the plan was delayed a bit, we did hire more people in 2021 to meet the increased work load required by the leasing companies, both from local resources and a range of other countries as well.

“We still need to hire some 70-80 people to fill up our available infrastructure, although it is not easy to find people with the required skills. There is a notorious shortage of aviation mechanics in Europe, something which has been further accentuated by the pandemic.”

To make sure the company has a potential pool of talents available, JOB AIR has partnered with local secondary technical schools and universities.

“Getting involved in a long-term preparation of potential future employees used to be a Plan B, now it has become Plan A,” Mr Stulancˇák admitted. n