Under the deal, Air France Industries, a provider of aircraft maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services, will support and service 86 GE90 engines that power Saudia's Boeing 777 fleet. The work will be carried out at Air France Industries's facilities at Paris Charles de Gaulle and Orly airports.

This agreement builds upon the strategic memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed in Riyadh in December 2024, during the state visit of President Emmanuel Macron. The MoU established the basis for enhanced industrial cooperation in aircraft maintenance, the development of local content, and commercial synergy between Saudia Group and the Air France-KLM Group.

As part of this long-term partnership, Air France Industries KLM E&M will deliver comprehensive and integrated engine support, including performance analytics, predictive maintenance solutions via PROGNOS, on-wing services, and field support. These services are aimed at ensuring optimal engine performance and minimising aircraft downtime – a key priority as Saudia continues to enhance its operational reliability and passenger experience.

This latest order, which will power six Airbus A350-900 aircraft, brings EgyptAir’s total commitment to the Trent XWB-84 engine to 32 units.

As part of this strategic partnership, Rolls-Royce will provide comprehensive maintenance and health services for the engines through its renowned TotalCare service, ensuring optimal performance and reliability for EgyptAir’s operations.

Ewen McDonald, chief customer officer, Rolls-Royce, said: “We are delighted that EgyptAir has chosen to order six additional Airbus A350s and sign a long-term service agreement that will cover the fleet. We extend our gratitude to EgyptAir for their continued trust in us, and we are proud to continue our long-standing relationship. We look forward to supporting these new aircraft when they enter service later this year.”

Capt. Ahmed Adel, chairman EgyptAir, said: “We are proud to strengthen our long-standing partnership with Rolls-Royce through the signing of this TotalCare contract for our Trent XWB-84 fleet. This agreement not only highlights our commitment to maintaining the highest standards of operational excellence but also marks a significant milestone in our collaboration with Rolls-Royce, ensuring the future success of EgyptAir with the addition of this advanced engine type.”

At the time of this announcement, five APUs are already undergoing maintenance at the renewed EPCOR facility based at Schiphol-Rijk, the Netherlands, with a steady pipeline of additional units anticipated over the course of the agreement.

“We are honoured to extend our partnership with Kuwait Airways, a historic airline with a proud legacy and a clear vision for operational excellence,” said Rob van de Graaf, commercial director at EPCOR. “This APU programme is a strong example of how we deliver value through technical depth, flexible support, and transparent collaboration.” 

“We view EPCOR and AFI KLM E&M not only as technical partners, but also as strategic allies in achieving our reliability and performance targets,” said Osama Al-Obaidan, engineering & maintenance director at Kuwait Airways. “Their track record with our 777 APU maintenance has demonstrated the professionalism, speed, and service quality we demand from our MRO providers. Renewing this agreement was a natural decision.”

Signed during Paris Air Show 2025, the agreements form part of a new GSE pavilion that will be featured at BIAS next November, with the aim to promote future-focused sustainable advancements across the wider aviation infrastructure. This new initiative on BIAS’ growing floorplan aligns with the Kingdom of Bahrain’s 2030 Vision for zero emissions and emphasising the use of electrical machinery in the industry.

Specialising in the global supply of used and refurbished ground support equipment, exhibitors secured include Airmarrel, Mallaghan, Mulag, Shire, Sovam, TLD, Trepel, Cobus Industries and DOLL.

BIAS 2026 will take place 18–20 November 2026, at Sakhir Airbase, Bahrain. Exhibitors and delegates interested in participating in BIAS 2026 are encouraged to secure their space early, as demand is expected to surpass previous editions.

At the same time, an MoU was also signed for Rolls-Royce’s comprehensive TotalCare service that will cover the health and maintenance of the engines. The Trent XWB-97 engine is the world’s most efficient large aero-engine, specifically designed for the Airbus A350-1000 and will help fulfil Riyadh Air’s ambitions to  y to over 100 global destinations by 2030. The airline, whose fleet orders now total up to 182 aircraft across three fleet types, is set to commence operations later in 2025.

The A350-1000 aircraft to be powered by the Trent XWB-97 engines, will help grow Riyadh Air’s network to the furthest corners of the globe, adding range and capacity that will ensure that Riyadh, a G20 capital city, will be fully connected to the world, realising the goals of Saudi Vision 2030. Having secured its Air Operators Certificate (AOC) earlier in 2025, Riyadh Air is making considerable progress as it moves closer to its maiden flight later this year.

Riyadh Air CFO, Adam Boukadida said: “The growth of Riyadh Air is of critical importance to the development of Saudi Arabia as an aviation hub, and selecting world-class companies like Rolls- Royce to power our future Airbus large wide-body  fleet ensures we have the right partners in place to achieve our ambitions. This deal for 100 Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-97 engines to power our fleet of Airbus A350-1000 aircraft is hugely significant as it brings us closer to realising our long-term vision of enhanced connectivity for Riyadh.”

Rob Watson, President, Civil Aerospace, Rolls-Royce, said: “We’re looking forward to supporting the significant growth ambitions of Riyadh Air in its launch year. The Trent XWB-97 is an incredible engine and our TotalCare package will provide operational certainty across the fleet. The engine will bene t from the £1bn investment we’re making to the Trent engine family that improves their durability and efficiency across all operations. We look forward to supporting these new aircraft as they enter service.”

Despite ATR’s postponement of its next-generation EVO project, the two companies are proceeding with research and technology work toward a hybrid-electric propulsion system. The timeframe illustrates the commercial aircraft sector’s struggles to move away from conventional engines and meet its decarbonisation objective.

ATR and P&WC are considering a major evolution of the current PW127XT turboprop, according to Daniel Cuchet, ATR’s head of engineering. They are counting on new materials to withstand higher temperatures and therefore cut the turboprop engine’s fuel consumption.

“We are talking about two-digit improvements in power and efficiency,” Cuchet says. The two companies are simultaneously exploring a hybrid-electric powertrain, where both the thermal engine and an electric motor can drive the propeller.

Batteries would be associated to a converter to supply 800VDC current to the motor, itself connected to the main gearbox. As ATRs do not have auxiliary power units and often operate from airports with little ground support equipment, the layout would enable recharging the batteries in 15-20 min. between flights.

Compared to thermal efficiencies, which are already very high, batteries leave much more room for improvement, Cuchet says. “That is what you need to work on as a priority,” he says.

He thus praises the recent announcement by Safran and Saft to work jointly on the next generation of batteries. The two companies intend to rely on lithium manganese ferro phosphate chemistry for higher specific energy, measured in energy content per weight unit.

As a third avenue of progress, ATR engineers are going to study the airframe’s aerodynamics, including engine integration. They may also find ways to reduce the aircraft’s weight, Cuchet adds.

“With those technologies, we are thinking of 2035 for entry into service,” he says. “And you can work on all those subjects in parallel.”

They may thus feed the broader EVO project, which also includes new avionics. Or they may enable an earlier evolution of the ATR 72-600, Cuchet says.

The companies plan for the facility to be open by the second quarter of 2026 under the Atama Nirbhar Bharat – Make in India programme of Indian Prime Minister Sh. Narendra Modi.

Under the agreement, RSR Aviation and Alpha Aircraft Systems will jointly set up an APU overhaul and testing centre in India, preferably in a designated aerospace industrial cluster in India.

“It is indeed an honour to sign the agreement at the Paris Air Show. Alpha Aircraft System is a pioneer in APU MRO based in the USA and has agreed to handhold our company for setting up of an APU MRO Centre in India under the vision of our Prime Minister Make-in-India. RSR staff would be trained by Alpha Aircraft in the USA, along with transfer of technology to build the APU centre in India,” said Suresh Rahangdale, director of RSR Aviation Services.

“We always wanted to have a strong base in India. Our agreement with RSR Aviation will help in achieving our goal. I am sure this would be an important milestone for us. Cheers to the team who made it happen”, said Israel Leppe, chief executive officer, Alpha Aircraft System.

Building on their existing cooperation around lease engines, AFI KLM E&M and AerCap intend to jointly own and manage a fleet of CFMI LEAP-1A and LEAP-1B engines enabling uninterrupted Airbus A320neo and Boeing 737 MAX fleet operations, while engines are going for a quick-turn or performance restoration shop visit within the AFI KLM E&M MRO network.

The formation of this joint venture, which is subject to any necessary approval, will strengthen the parties’ strategic collaboration to leverage their combined and complementary expertise in engine leasing, asset management and MRO services providing comprehensive MRO support to customers all over the world. Furthermore, the joint venture will benefit LEAP engine operators worldwide by offering the combined experience of a global airline-MRO that operates and maintains 'new gen' aircraft and engines with that of a world-class aircraft and engine lessor.

“This partnership represents a new chapter in our strategic relationship with AerCap,” said Anne Brachet, EVP Air France-KLM Engineering & Maintenance. “In a LEAP spare market where access to spares will be key for operators, by pooling our respective strengths in engine leasing and MRO services, we are enhancing our ability to support LEAP engine operators with greater flexibility and operational continuity. This new joint venture reflects our shared commitment to delivering innovative, customer-focused solutions that meet the evolving needs of the global aviation industry.”

“We have been very pleased with the high level of service and support provided by Air France Industries KLM Engineering & Maintenance over the years,” said Tom Slattery, Executive Vice President, AerCap Engines. “This new venture not only underscores the strength of our strategic partnership but also reflects the mutual trust and commitment between our two companies and further demonstrates our confidence in AFI KLM E&M’s capabilities and our shared commitment to operational excellence. We look forward to advancing this successful collaboration through this new joint venture.”

This marks an important milestone on Rolls-Royce’s transformation programme into a high performing, competitive, resilient and growing business.  

Increasing ‘Time on Wing’ for the Trent 1000 will bring significantly improved asset utilisation, reduced maintenance burden and provide far greater fleet planning certainty for customers. The durability enhancement complements the excellent reliability that the Trent 1000 already has.

The enhancement package has been installed in new engines since January 2025, ready for delivery to customers at the earliest opportunity post-certification. From today, they will now be distributed to maintenance facilities globally, to be retrofitted to engines that are already in service. Within two years all of the Trent 1000 fleet will have been upgraded.

The upgraded components have already been enhancing durability since 2022 on the Trent 7000 engine. It is performing better than expected, and in some cases more than tripling Time on Wing. This proven in-service performance gives Rolls-Royce full confidence in the same benefit reading across to Trent 1000 customers.

The new technologies – part of the Trent fleet £1bn durability enhancement programme – will contribute to Rolls-Royce meeting its mid-term targets to increase average Time on Wing across all modern Trent engines, which incorporates the Trent 1000, Trent 7000, Trent XWB-84 and Trent XWB-97. The company announced earlier this year that this target would double from its initial ambition of a 40% average increase to 80% by 2027.

Chief Executive Officer, Tufan Erginbilgic, said: “The Trent 1000 is an important engine for us and today marks a new chapter in its story. When upgraded, we’re confident that our customers and their passengers will benefit from increased durability, thanks to the proven enhancements that have already surpassed our expectations on the Trent 7000.

“As part of our ongoing transformation, the investment we have made in new technologies will see the Trent 1000 deliver for Boeing, our customers and our investors. It’s a win-win for everyone involved.”

The first phase of durability enhancement includes a 40% increase in cooling to the new high pressure turbine blade. There are also updates to the combustion system, fuel spray nozzles and engine electronic controller software.

Rob Watson, President of Rolls-Royce Civil Aerospace, said: “Today is an important day for Rolls-Royce, our customers and our partnership with Boeing. We know that the same enhancements have already tripled Time on Wing in some cases for the Trent 7000, so we are confident it will deliver for Trent 1000 customers. To do so at pace, we began installing the enhancements into new engines prior to today’s certification to reduce the lead time as much as possible. They will now enter the fleet immediately.”

Phase two of the Durability Enhancement Package is currently being tested at Rolls-Royce’s facility in Derby, UK and will bring a further 30% improvement in Time on Wing across the Trent 1000 and Trent 7000 fleets. It features advanced coating on combustor tiles in non-benign environments; cooling and coating changes to high pressure nozzle guide vanes; weight reduction and coating improvements to high pressure turbine blades; and a redesigned combustor-to-turbine interface taken from the latest variant Trent XWB-84 EP. This further enhancement will start entering the Trent 1000 fleet from early 2026.

Rolls-Royce’s transformation programme is enabling it to deliver on its strategic initiatives. Today’s announcement on the Trent 1000 is an example of that in action. This milestone builds on the Trent 1000’s already strong reliability performance and creates a truly competitive and compelling product for customers.   

The beneficiaries of any such move are expected to be MRO operations in the Middle East, Southeast Asia and the USA.

Meanwhile, IndiGo has been directed by the country’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to terminate a contract with Turkish Airlines under which it damp-leases two Boeing 777 aircraft from the Turkish flag-carrier. The current contract is understood to end on 31 August.

The Times of India said the moves come in the wake of Turkey’s vocal support for Pakistan in the recent flare-up of hostilities in Kashmir and  criticism of India’s anti-terror operations. The newspaper, citing an interview by the Press Trust of Indian (PTI) with Air India chief executive Campbell Wilson, quoted Wilson as saying: “It does take awhile to adjust when the circumstances change around us, but we are obviously sensitive to the national sentiment and perhaps national wishes.

“With this most recent development, we will look to recalibrate where we send our aircraft, reduce the amount that we are sending to Turkiye and send [them] to other places.

“We are cognisant of recent developments and we will look to adjust our plans.”

Wilson noted that aviation MRO is embedded in a global business framework, aircraft maintenance was mandatory and the airline would still have to send its aircraft abroad for heavy checks. “It will take some time for India to have the capacity to do such work,” he added.

It is understood that Turkish Technic currently carries out heavy maintenance on aircraft from Air India Boeing 777 and 787 types. It operates 64 widebodies among its fleet of 191 aircraft.

On 15 May, DGCA also revoked the security clearance of Turkish company Celebi Airport Services India, which provides ground handling services at nine Indian airports including Delhi and Mumbai, on “national security” concerns.