A320neo part-out trend accelerates as AerFin preps to break down four jets

Another batch of Airbus A320neo-family jets are set to be disassembled for parts, as supply chain shortages make the practice of parting-out relatively new jets increasingly attractive. The latest maintenance firm to join the trend is aftermarket provider AerFin, which has closed a deal to acquire four A320neo-family aircraft, the company’s senior vice-president of the Americas Jacqueline Fernandez said on 9 April. “They will be hitting us towards the end of this year,” Fernandez says at the MRO Americas event in Atlanta. She confirms the aircraft are powered by Pratt & Whitney PW1100G geared turbofans (GTFs) and that AerFin will scavenge the jets for spare parts, known in the industry as “used serviceable material”. Fernandez declines to provide more detail about the aircraft. But having GTFs is notable because P&W has recalled those engines due to a manufacturing error that might have left them with defective metallic components. As a result, hundreds of GTF-powered A320neos and A220s are grounded globally for engine maintenance that can take close to a year to complete. AerFin is the third company in recent days to disclose plans to part-out Airbus jets with GTFs.<br/>