AIN’s product support survey for 2024 saw Bombardier rise to the top of all manufacturers with a full point improvement from 2023, when it ranked last in the business jet sector with a score of 7.6. The company’s 8.6 rating this year resulted from a strong showing in several categories, including a tie for first place with Dassault in warranty fulfillment with a score of 9.0.

Also seeing gains in support rankings in 2024 were Embraer and Dassault, with each improving by 0.4 points in the overall average from 2023. Both had strong service center ratings, reflecting their concerted effort to grow support capacity.

Atop the turboprop ratings, Pilatus continued to score among the highest overall in the survey. However, its 8.4 rating tied Embraer’s in the overall average, two points behind Bombardier.

While virtually every company surveyed last year reported negative effects of supply chain constraints, several reported some improvement in that area in 2024. Efforts to relieve the pressure took the form of better communication and hands-on help for suppliers, increasing inventory levels, and maintaining closer ties with teardown agencies to help supplement their parts inventories. Finally, continued pressure from increased demand for MRO services saw companies add still more square footage for MRO operations and parts warehousing.

However, cost of parts continued to be a sticking point for many of the OEMs in the survey. As with last year, that category brought in the lowest scores.

Rolland Vincent of Texas-based Rolland Vincent Associates—the data provider for the AIN survey—noted that improved competitive conditions and easing of supply chain constraints accounted for much of the overall improvement in scores. 

Finally, while staffing shortages broadly accounted for adverse effects, some of the OEMs reported more success in recruiting technicians than others.

First-place finisher Bombardier, for example, benefitted from apprenticeship programs at facilities in London, Singapore, and Melbourne, Australia, to ensure a flow of new hires trained to address any workforce shortages. A new program in Wichita supported with grants by the state of Kansas promises further capacity, as has its direct development of needed infrastructure.

Bombardier

After finishing last among the five business jet makers appearing in 2023’s survey, Bombardier became the top-rated OEM in the airframer category this year as it jumped to 8.6. Bombardier ranked first in cost-per-hour programs with an 8.3 rating, placing it six-tenths of a point ahead of the second-place vote-getter Gulfstream. It also had a strong showing (9.0) in aircraft reliability.

The Improvements

Supporting an in-service global fleet of some 5,170 aircraft, Bombardier continues to work toward ensuring that operators consider the OEM their “first choice” for maintenance, modifications, and parts. In a recent interview with AIN, Bombardier v-p of product support Anthony Cox said achieving that objective starts with building the company’s network footprint with an ever-expanding team of 1,800 technicians.

‘We clearly have to focus on the customers where they need us, when they need us,” he explained. “So, we do a lot of studying of the demographic worldwide, and we consider our aircraft movements and our installed base. We study the maintenance requirements that are upcoming, and the parts that our customers may need. Those studies allow us to address each market with a suitable infrastructure, human resources or human capital, and any other technical abilities that we may need.”

Cox noted that Bombardier no longer suffers from the staffing shortages that virtually every maintenance provider experienced before the Covid pandemic took hold.

“Two years ago, I think we would’ve been pleased to see around 150 aircraft in maintenance throughout the network,” said Cox. “Typically, today, we have anywhere from 280 to 300 aircraft in work. So, in terms of market share, we continue to improve that. Market share is a result of the customers having a good experience, word of mouth, our expanded capabilities, our expanded footprint, and full OEM support.”

Cox further reported that supply chain constraints have begun to loosen for Bombardier and generally industry-wide. However, some of the smallest sub-suppliers continue to suffer from a shortage of raw materials, for example.

“We still have some difficulties with a couple of partners who are catching up on raw material, but none of it [is] affecting our production line,” explained Cox. “The in-service market where we struggle is just with a couple of suppliers who make unique parts. They require certain equipment; they require finesse in the supply chain.”

“We’re working with those partners. We have about a hundred intervention specialists that we’ve deployed out to our various vendors. And their role is to assist the vendors in any shortages, make sure that we have a line of balance to support our aftermarket needs.”

Cox also noted that its proprietary Smart Link application has yielded significant returns, allowing for what he called a visualization of the aircraft health monitoring system. In a Global 7500, for example, the application generates thousands of parameters per millisecond to analyze potential problems ahead of landing, giving technicians alerts to ensure they have access to the needed parts.

Embraer

Finishing with an overall average score of 8.4, Embraer saw its results improve by four-tenths of a point from last year’s showing, leaving it in a close second place behind Bombardier. The Brazilian manufacturer saw some of its strongest category rankings in technical manuals (9.1), technical representatives (9.2), and overall aircraft reliability (9.1), all of which placed it among the top of the individual scores. Among all the scoring categories, only a fourth-place finish in parts availability (7.2) weighed on the overall result.

The Improvements

Characterizing its focus on customer experience as essential to its entrepreneurial success and a core aspect of its business strategy, Embraer Services & Support highlights its Executive Care program as a way to help navigate a healthy expansion of the business and to budget aircraft maintenance costs.

Executive Care rolls together planning, budgeting, and support under a fixed monthly fee, along with an hourly charge for flight hours flown to render a straightforward and simple program for customers to manage. The program freezes costs for scheduled and unscheduled maintenance items upon enrollment.

Important improvements over the past year include technical services at no cost for up to five hours and reduced rates thereafter, as well as carbon offsets of the first 25 flight hours for newly delivered aircraft. Although the program does not cover parts, Embraer offers up to a 10% discount over the standard list price, as well as a 10% discount for new enrollments in landing gear overhaul add-ons. Finally, operators get a special price for select service bulletins and Phenom STC special coverage.

To ensure operational excellence, Embraer is concentrating on guaranteed spare parts availability and optimized inventory turnover to minimize downtime and enhance cost-effectiveness, as well as footprint expansion and synergy to streamline operations across locations to eliminate redundancies, foster collaboration, and improve overall efficiency.

Embraer doubled its maintenance service capacity in the U.S. to support the continued growth of its customer base with the addition of three Executive Aviation MRO facilities at Dallas Love Field, Cleveland, and Sanford, Florida. In support of the expansion, Embraer Services & Support increased its mobile response network by 28 teams and added access to interior services, paint, and component repairs. Embraer Services & Support also said it intends to move its facilities at Paris–Le Bourget Airport to a new maintenance building capable of accommodating more capacity, while committing to low-carbon construction and energy self-sufficiency. The company expects the new executive aviation maintenance facility to more than double the unit’s capacity.

Dassault

Finishing just a tenth of a point lower than second-ranked Embraer at 8.3, Dassault saw an overall rating improvement of four-tenths of a point compared with its 7.9 showing last year. The company’s highest individual scores in warranty fulfillment (9.0) and technical representatives (9.3) both helped maintain its buoyancy. However, lower scores in cost-­per-hour programs (7.1) and AOG response (7.7) helped keep it from ascending any higher than its third-place finish.

The Improvements

Dassault Aviation’s opening in late March of a purpose-built 149,500-sq-ft MRO facility in Kuala Lumpur further supports the company’s plan for developing a wider global aftermarket footprint with modernized and expanded facilities to support the growing fleet and product line of its Falcon family. Operating under the ExecuJet brand, the service center can support 10 to 15 aircraft at one time, including Dassault’s largest aircraft, the Falcon 6X, which recently entered service, and the larger 10X, scheduled to reach the market in 2027.

The acquisition of the global maintenance activities of Luxaviation’s ExecuJet subsidiary and the European-based MRO activities of TAG Aviation five years ago cemented Dassault’s plan to command a worldwide Falcon maintenance network and bring support capability closer to customers.

“Over the last half decade, we have more than doubled our global support capacity and considerably modernized our MRO capability,” said Jean Kayanakis, Dassault Aviation senior v-p for worldwide customer service. “We now have more than 60 service locations and 15 parts distribution centers around the world, along with the go-teams necessary to support aircraft in the field 24/7 wherever they may be. This is part of a strategy aimed at keeping us as close as possible to our customers and offering all the services needed to maximize the up-time and value of their Falcon fleets.”

Further expansion will hinge on the opening of several more facilities, including a new U.S. flagship MRO in Melbourne, Florida, to support Falcons operating in North and South America, in 2025. Further added capacity in the U.S. will take the form of another authorized service center (ASC), Pro Star Aviation, located near Boston.

Dassault also opened a third authorized facility in India, Indamer in New Delhi, adding to the two ASCs in Mumbai. Dassault said all the activity reflects a need to stay ahead of fleet growth and provide more service. The company has 40 factory service centers, 21 ASCs, and 15 parts distribution centers.

Meanwhile, Dassault’s relocation of its facility in Sorocaba, near São Paulo, Brazil, anchors Catarina International Executive Airport’s maintenance offering.

Last year, the company opened a major new ExecuJet MRO center at the Dubai World Central airport.

Finally, the company continued to encourage more customer use of Dassault’s online parts ordering system. Now, its customer base places 70% of orders online while Dassault continues to improve its customer portal and add eCommerce platforms. Last year, it increased parts inventory by 13% amid gradually improving supply chain constraints and high fleet utilization.

Gulfstream

After ranking in a tie for the top spot with Textron last year, Gulfstream saw its total score fall by one-tenth of a point in 2024. However, with the improvements made this year by Bombardier, Embraer, and Dassault, an 8.0 overall score lowered Gulfstream’s position to the number-four spot. Gulfstream’s lower rating in cost of parts (5.9) and factory-­owned service centers (7.8) weighed on its total score.

The Improvements

Gulfstream continues its pursuit of a plan for facility modernization and expansion to ensure consistent service across all its service centers.

In April, the company continued the expansion of its Savannah-based MRO facility, already one of the largest dedicated business aviation maintenance facilities in the world. Once complete, it will provide more than 200,000 sq ft of workspace, allowing Gulfstream to expand scheduled and unscheduled inspections as well as maintenance, avionics upgrades, and interior refurbishments.

The company followed the Savannah announcement with a new repair and overhaul shop that opened at its Farnborough Service Center. In Mesa, Arizona, the company began work on expansion in the fall of 2022 in anticipation of completion of its new 225,000-sq-ft facility later this year. In the Dallas-Fort Worth area, progress continues on a new component repair and overhaul facility where Gulfstream plans first to concentrate on wheels, brakes, and landing gear and then increase offerings to support aircraft structures, avionics, and other components.

Gulfstream has invested heavily in spare parts storage and distribution, concentrating its effort on locating warehouses near key airports such as Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson Airport in Georgia and Schipol Airport in Amsterdam.  

Meanwhile, Gulfstream has increased its investment to more than $2 billion in ready-to-serve parts inventory, helping the company mitigate ongoing supply chain constraints. The company’s in-house repair and overhaul (R&O) capabilities aid an effort to gain more control over the supply chain. R&O capabilities also align with sustainability goals, allowing for extension of aircraft life cycles while reducing the need for raw materials and manufacturing of replacement goods.

The manufacturer also has increased the strength of its workforce by identifying and establishing new roles to enhance customer service, where teams have grown by more than 500 employees in just the past year. The company now employs more than 5,000 people at a dozen MRO locations across the Americas, Europe, and Asia.

Finally, the company continues preparations for entry into service of the G700, on which the customer support team has already completed extensive training for deliveries of the aircraft. 

Textron Aviation

The only business jet airframer to have scored below an overall 8.0 rating, Textron Aviation registered a score of 7.9, a drop of 0.2 from last year. A 6.5-point showing in cost of parts beat Gulfstream’s placement in that category. The company did see respectable scores in overall reliability at 8.8 points, placing it a tenth of a point above Gulfstream, while a 7.5-point showing in cost-per-hour programs placed it above Dassault’s 7.1 score.

The Improvements

The manufacturer of Beechcraft and Cessna aircraft has spent what it calls a significant investment in support over the past year. During the past year, Textron added resources and employees in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region, boosting support outside its U.S. stronghold. The expansion included a third member of its 1CALL team based in Spain for unscheduled maintenance support along with a technical support team in Australia.

Technology investments saw the addition of Textron Aviation’s service management app, helping ease the process for customers to review and approve work and connect with a service center. A Textron rulemaking change request would allow Part 91 owners of single-engine turbine-powered airplanes to perform a “current inspection program recommended by the manufacturer” in lieu of annual or 100-hour inspections,” effectively increasing inspection program options and reducing maintenance costs.

The expansion of the company’s parts distribution facility at its Wichita headquarters adds 180,000 sq ft of space, ensuring a ready supply of parts for both new and existing models. 

Honda Aircraft

Honda did not draw enough responses to post a valid result.

The Improvements

Following the introduction of a flexible phased maintenance program for operators of HondaJet HA-420-family light twinjets early last year, Honda Aircraft took another step last October to reinforce efforts to develop a service to help owners more effectively manage the maintenance of their airplanes. Called Aircraft Management Services (AMS), the program aims to streamline ownership burdens while offering owners greater control and predictability with maintenance demands, according to the company.

Honda has made AMS available to owners enrolled in its Flight Ready service plans. Participants work with Honda Aircraft’s customer service division to guide, plan, and schedule maintenance activities while prioritizing safety, dependability, and value preservation. Honda Aircraft’s network of authorized service centers will perform the work. Although the company’s support facilities number 21 worldwide, Honda Aircraft has launched the program to first serve U.S.-based N-registered HondaJets.

Benefits of the program include AOG support, upgrades, and modification; value retention through aircraft detailing; scheduled maintenance tracking and scheduling; unscheduled maintenance support; pilot services support; service bulletin and airworthiness directive compliance; and consolidated billing.

Separately, the phased maintenance program divides the 600-hour and 1,200-hour major inspection tasks as defined in the Airworthiness Limitation and Inspection Manual (ALIM) into four 150-hour intervals while still covering all the service tasks in the manufacturer’s regularly scheduled maintenance program.

The FAA-approved program debuted in April 2023 at all of the company’s authorized U.S. service centers. Compared with traditional maintenance schedules, the new offering aims to reduce downtime for aircraft per service event and provide customers with a “more efficient cadence of maintenance events.”

Honda’s phased maintenance program breaks down the 600-hour and 1,200-hour major inspection event tasks as defined in the Airworthiness Limitation and Inspection Manual into four phases at 150-hour intervals while still covering all the service tasks in the OEM’s regularly scheduled maintenance program.

Pilatus

Among the two OEMs to appear in the rankings of turboprops still in production, Pilatus with its PC-12 outscored Textron’s King Air support by an average of 0.5. However, the Swiss manufacturer saw its own composite score fall by two-tenths of a point compared with last year’s showing of 8.6.

The company’s standout scores of 9.1 or better in four distinct categories proved remarkable. Its highest result of 9.3 in both overall reliability and factory-owned service centers helped counter its weaker results in parts availability and cost, with 7.4 and 6.2, respectively.

The Improvements

Pilatus has seen its fleet of more than 2,090 PC-12s account for 10.6 million flying hours, while some 360 PC-12NXGs amass about 210,000 flying hours. About 260 PC-24 light jets now in operation have collected 230,000 hours in the air.

Pilatus held five customer-oriented operators conferences around the world in the past year. During that time, it entered an agreement to acquire the Pilatus-focused MRO business from Aero Centers Epps in Atlanta.

A major revision to the company’s service center policies and procedures improved spare parts availability and allowed for faster response times. Along with that effort, Pilatus developed a real-time service center analytics suite, allowing greater cooperation between the OEM and its authorized service centers to further standardize “Pilatus Class” service.

Pilatus obtained approval for engineering design work under its Stans DOA at Pilatus Business Aircraft in the U.S., obtained Pilatus FOCA/EASA approval for Pilatus PC-24 maintenance training, and opened a second maintenance training classroom at Pilatus Business Aircraft USA.

Textron Aviation

Textron Aviation’s King Air turboprop matched its composite score of 7.9 from last year in the turboprop sector as well as among the company’s three business jet models, cementing its finish in both groupings. While finishing behind Pilatus by half a point in the turboprop category, the King Air posted relatively high scores in company-­owned and authorized service centers, where it finished ahead of Pilatus by two-tenths of a point. Also finishing ahead of Pilatus in technical manuals, the King Air’s support apparatus scored overall aircraft reliability of 8.6.

The Improvements

The manufacturer of Beechcraft and Cessna aircraft has spent what it calls a significant investment in support over the past year. During the past year, Textron added resources and employees in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region, boosting support outside its U.S. stronghold. The expansion included a third member of its 1CALL team based in Spain for unscheduled maintenance support along with a technical support team in Australia.

Technology investments saw the addition of Textron Aviation’s service management app, helping ease the process for customers to review and approve work and connect with a service center. A Textron rulemaking change request would allow Part 91 owners of single-engine turbine-powered airplanes to perform a “current inspection program recommended by the manufacturer” in lieu of annual or 100-hour inspections,” effectively increasing inspection program options and reducing maintenance costs.

The expansion of the company’s parts distribution facility at its Wichita headquarters adds 180,000 sq ft of space, ensuring a ready supply of parts for both new and existing models. 

Daher did not draw enough responses to post a valid sample of scores.

The Improvements

Daher has shown progress on several elements of its maintenance offering, most notably the consolidation of the Kodiak Care and TBM support networks under the umbrella dubbed Kodiak & TBM Care. The company now boasts 55 service centers, just four of which are factory-owned. In North America, customers have access to 28 TBM centers, 14 Kodiak locations, and eight that now serve both airplanes.

What Daher calls the Prestige package for the purchase of a new TBM 960 includes the TBM Total Care Maintenance Program, which covers scheduled maintenance for five years or 1,000 flight hours. The company offers a similar program for TBM 910 customers. For a new Kodiak 100 or Kodiak 900, the Kodiak Care maintenance program covers four years or 1,000 hours.

Since 2018, Daher has developed the use of data transmission systems on TBM models. The systems enable full-flight engine and aircraft data recording and wireless transmission to the relevant server. In-house experts continue enlarging its list of high-value features, reports. The same data feed the Daher-developed Me & My TBM app, which generates individual flying assessments and debriefs of pilot owners/operators.

Leonardo

Posting a strong 8.4 composite rating in this year’s survey, Leonardo nevertheless scored three-tenths of a point lower this year than it did in 2023. The only helicopter maker to have drawn enough responses to post a valid sample of votes in this year’s list, the company took the top slot in the helicopter sector by default. Nevertheless, it finished with better than an 8.0 in eight of the 10 groups. Technical representatives accounted for its highest score at 9.2.

The Improvements

A plan Leonardo formulated last year to strengthen the level of support through 2025 has already boosted the company’s global service network, including digitization and enhancements in supply chain management. Leonardo further reinforced its service center and logistics support network through closer proximity to operators’ bases. Present in all continents, the company reinforced its network in Europe with Leonardo Belgium’s service growth and Yeovil’s single-site logistics hub. Other focus markets include Australia, Malaysia, the U.S., Brazil, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.

Digital advances include Leonardo’s Sesto Calende, Italy-based Diagnostic Service Tower, which supports data gathering and analysis for more than 1,400 connected helicopters. Benefits include fleet management and operational efficiency gains, data-driven training, spares, and logistics management.

In the field of logistics, the company increased critical items stock availability and logistics output to respond to its growing in-service fleet. Critical stock availability (fill rate) improved by 150% in 2023 versus 2022, and the company registered a more than 50% logistics output over 2022.

Bell

Bell did not draw enough responses to post a valid sample of scores.

The Improvements

Bell’s new customer service facilities include Chinook Helicopters, established this year as an authorized Bell 505 dealership serving Western Canada. As an authorized Bell 505 dealership, Chinook Helicopters will execute aircraft demonstration flights and work to promote the aircraft to Western Canada private operators. Bell also signed an agreement to grant Bell customer service authorization to Abu Dhabi Aviation and provide service for Bell 212, Bell 412, and the Subaru Bell 412EPX helicopters.

Finally, Bell has named Boeing as an authorized and endorsed supplier of used serviceable material products for Bell 212 and 412 customers and maintenance providers. The agreement allows Bell to expand its Boeing-­supported rotable pool with USM parts including airframe, main transmission, avionics, main rotor head, main rotor blades, tail rotor blades, and gearboxes.

Airbus Helicopters

Airbus Helicopters did not draw enough responses to post a valid sample of scores.

The Improvements

Evidence of the effectiveness of Airbus Helicopters’ innovation in product support comes with advances in HCare offerings since the program’s launch in 2022. Last year, the company saw the number of Airbus helicopters covered by one of the three versions of HCare global contracts—namely HCare Initial, HCare In-Service, and HCare Lifetime—grow by 4%, reflecting their flexibility and ability to meet customer expectations throughout the life cycle of their fleets.

Meanwhile, Airbus’ investments to address supply chain constraints yielded a €400 million increase in working capital over 2019. The company also managed to increase the supply of spare parts with end-of-life management, extending the life of serviceable components and creating more opportunities to lower prices with helicopter buy-backs and dismantling complete helicopters.

Airbus has begun using a new multi-purpose test bench for those components installed last year at Airbus Helicopters in Grand Prairie, Texas, resulting in decreased turnaround time for customers and more than a two-fold capacity in testing capacity for main gearboxes.