Aviation_News_2017-03

BRITISH AIRWAYS MAINTENANCE CARDIFF

British Airways Maintenance Cardiff (BAMC) is a

wholly owned subsidiary of BA. The huge British

Airways Boeing 747, 767 and 777 base at Cardiff

was opened in June 1993 in a specialist three-bay

hangar, initially to conduct all of the airline’s heavy

Boeing 747 maintenance. The 70-acre site also

includes two ‘nose-in’ facilities for interior work

and a shielded engine-run bay. BAMC diversified

from its original 747s to other BA Boeing types,

the 767 and 777, and on May 3, 2016 the first

Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner for BAMC to work on

arrived.

Earlier plans for Airbus A380 maintenance were

thwarted by hangar/aircraft size issues. The

advent of 787 maintenance follows on from BA’s

gradual reduction of its 747-400 fleet. Many

retired examples are flown to Cardiff for useful/

recyclable components to be stripped before the

aircraft are flown to desert storage. An 18-aircraft

refurbishment programme has also been in

progress at BAMC since February 2016 with

each receiving an additional 16 Club seats and

Panasonic next-generation eX3 entertainment

system.

Retirement for BA 747-400s was originally due

to be completed by 2019 but that date has been

extended to the 2020s. It means BAMC will be

maintaining the remaining 747-400s well into the

next decade. The centre’s 787 expertise saw

BAMC carry out work on a Norwegian example

(LN-LMC) in October 2016. In the same month

redundancies were sought for about 10% of its

current 700 workforce. British Airways said the

proposals were to ensure it could continue “to

deliver a sustainable and competitive service”.

Since then, other new Flybe routes

have been announced. A bonus to the

range of services was the inauguration

of a twice-daily Flybe rotation to London

City in October last year. The start of this

service was precipitated by electrification

work on the Paddington to South Wales

railway line through the Severn Tunnel

and delays to rail travellers in October and

November as a result of the work. The

flights immediately proved popular, with the

airport and airline saying, “use it and we’ll

fly it”. The business community has given

the thumbs up with the service currently

continuing.

LONG TERM

Several long-term, stalwart companies have

been part of the Cardiff scene for many

years. Thomson/TUI is perhaps the longest

serving, with several brands, starting with

Euravia in 1964, through Britannia Airways

to TUI-owned Thomson Airways. It bases

two – and sometimes three – 737-800s

at Cardiff during the summer season,

and maintain 737 services to popular

Mediterranean destinations year-round. They

also fly winter flights direct from Cardiff to

Bridgetown, Barbados, using 767-300s and

787 Dreamliners.

Dutch airline KLM – now with its

Cityhopper brand – has served Cardiff

in several iterations since NetherLines’

Jetstreams took over the Cardiff-Amsterdam

schedule from Dan-Air in 1986. KLM

Cityhopper has marketed the route

successfully using Amsterdam as an

international hub airport to the world. A

twice-daily rotation is operated by Eastern

Airways’ Jetstream 41s maintaining a link

from the Dan-Air days between Aberdeen-

Newcastle-Cardiff.

Top left: Long-term operator KLM Cityhopper

uses Fokker 70s (and occasionally E190s) for

the three-times daily rotations to Amsterdam.

Middle left: Spanish airline Vueling started

operations from Cardiff in 2012 and has

increased its presence to serve four Spanish

cities.

Left: Lockheed C-130A, N121TG, based at

Cardiff in 2015 and the early part of last year,

is fitted with rear fuselage bars to spray

dispersant on oil spills.

British Airways Maintenance Cardiff’s huge three-bay hangar receives the airline’s Boeing

747s, 767s, 777s. The first 787 Dreamliner to arrive for maintenance visited last year.

58 Aviation News incorporating Jets March 2017

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