Boeing and Lufthansa Technik Defense signed a multi-year contract on comprehensive technical sustainment services for the German Navy’s eight P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft (MPA), the first of which was delivered earlier this month.
The agreed work scope will include nearly all product segments of the global maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) company, from aircraft maintenance and engine support services via component supply to operations management and technical training. The several decades of experience in maintaining the Boeing 737 – the technical basis for the P-8A – allows Lufthansa Technik to support the German Navy with a nearly unrivalled expertise for this aircraft type.
The Boeing P-8A is a highly capable multi-role maritime patrol and submarine-hunting aircraft based on the popular Boeing 737 jetliner. Following the initial procurement of five P-8A aircraft in June 2021 – to replace Germany’s aging fleet of P-3 Orion MPA – Germany added three additional aircraft in 2023 to bring the total number of P-8As for the German Navy’s Air Arm (Marineflieger) to eight. Next to Boeing and Lufthansa Technik, ESG Elektroniksystem-und Logistik-GmbH (now a HENSOLDT company) is also part of the German industry team ensuring highest operational availability for the German Navy’s missions. Overall, there are 200 Boeing P-8s currently in service or on order across nine countries including the United States, Australia, India, the United Kingdom, Norway, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, Germany and Canada.
“This new contract expands our military MRO portfolio to include its first weapon-[carrying] aircraft system and further strengthens its long-standing and trusted partnership with the German Armed Forces,” said Michael von Puttkamer, Vice President Special Aircraft Services & Defense at Lufthansa Technik. “The company plays a vital role in ensuring the operational readiness of this new weapon system and, in the spirit of Germany’s ‘Zeitenwende’ [turning point] in security policy, contributes to the strengthening of national defense capabilities,” he added.
Lufthansa Technik will provide the German Navy with comprehensive aircraft maintenance services right from the start of the German P-8A operations. The company’s headquarters in Hamburg will become a mainstay for both line maintenance (in-service checks) and base maintenance services (heavy airframe and system checks) on the P-8A. With this agreement, Germany is Lufthansa Technik Defense’s third P-8 customer, after New Zealand and India.
To ensure the reliable supply of spare parts, even in times of challenged global supply chains, Lufthansa Technik will support the German Navy’s P-8A operations from its aircraft component services segment. The company’s total component support provides the Navy with access to Lufthansa Technik’s dedicated pool of P-8A commercial spare parts. Open-loop exchanges with Lufthansa Technik enable the German Navy to directly replace any unserviceable aircraft components without waiting for repairs. This reduces spare-part related aircraft downtimes to a minimum and significantly increases the operational readiness of the German P-8A fleet. In addition, Lufthansa Technik will ensure the constant supply of consumables and expendables, such as bearings, fasteners or lubricants.
To maximise both efficiency and time-on-wing of the P-8ª’s engines, especially in their usually rough operating environment flying over salt water, Lufthansa Technik will also conduct a dedicated engine condition monitoring. This ensures that faults and defects are detected early in the two P-8A CFM56-7B power plants, precisely identifying any forms of performance degradation and thus preventing unscheduled removals and unnecessary run-ups. This will help maintain the robust and economic operation of the German P-8A fleet.
“Over the decades, we have had thousands of Boeing 737s visit our hangars. Servicing nearly all of these subtypes has given us unrivalled expertise for this aircraft type, which we are more than happy to employ in the maintenance of the P-8A as its military derivative,” explained Michael von Puttkamer. “All the services we proudly provide to the service people of the German Navy are united in one common goal: to ensure the highest possible operational readiness for their most-modern flying asset, whose reliable services have become more important than ever,” he said.
Lufthansa Technik and its subsidiary Lufthansa Technical Training began supporting the qualification of German Navy personnel for the P-8A long before the German P-8A’s entry into service. Since then, more than 20 technicians have meanwhile completed the multi-stage training course (practical and on-the-job training) for the baseline Boeing 737NG, and only a quick differentiation course is then required to also qualify for the military derivative.
To be ready for P-8A services from day one, Lufthansa Technik has actively procured the necessary tooling and ground servicing equipment (GSE) for the German Navy: from aircraft stairs via hydraulic units to towing tooling. The experts of the MRO company will perform the required perodic calibration of tools and GSE. Lufthansa Technik’s Technical Operation Center in Hamburg will have a dedicated technical helpdesk to support the German Navy.