Lufthansa Technik Puerto Rico Celebrates Grand Opening of New Facility

In a grand opening ceremony, Lufthansa Technik and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico celebrate the operational status of Lufthansa Technik Puerto Rico (LTPR). Upon the arrival of the first A320 from JetBlue Airways, the second launching customer of LTPR, another overhaul line of the facility has opened on-time.

The presence of Puerto Rico Governor Alejandro García Padilla; Vinai Thummalapally, executive director of SelectUSA; Dr. Peter Wittig, the German ambassador to the U.S.; and Simone Menne, member of the executive board of Deutsche Lufthansa AG, emphasized the importance of this strategic milestone for Puerto Rico and Lufthansa Technik.

In their commemorative speeches the partners expressed their extraordinary satisfaction of the realization of the project, with a ground breaking ceremony just one year ago.

"Growing and diversifying our island's economy are a priority to restore economic stability, and successful investments like Lufthansa Technik's are a testament to Puerto Rico's competitive advantages," says Governor García Padilla.

 "Congratulations to the teams from Puerto Rico and Lufthansa Technik who worked so hard to make this facility a reality," says Vinai Thummalapally, executive director of SelectUSA. "It is an honor to meet so many of the new employees in person and celebrate what they have achieved so far. This investment is creating new jobs with valuable training and opportunities for growth, and that means a lot to the families here." SelectUSA - a U.S. Department of Commerce effort to encourage, facilitate, and accelerate business investment in the United States - partnered with Puerto Rico in the process to establish Lufthansa Technik's operations in the island.

"The foundation and implementation of LTPR is a prime example for a successful business development project," says Dr. Johannes Bussmann, chairman of the executive board of Lufthansa Technik.

Currently, LTPR employs more than 200 people at Rafael Hernández International Airport in Aguadilla. When the final configuration of five overhaul lines is reached in early 2017, LTPR will offer up to 400 jobs for highly qualified local employees. The company will also begin to offer overhaul services for the Boeing 737 family in addition to the Airbus A320 family.

Johannes Bussmann adds: "In the few weeks since starting operations, LTPR has already proved its high value for the further development of Lufthansa Technik's business in the Americas. This is a prime example for what a highly motivated team can achieve. In particular, I want to thank Elmar Lutter and his colleagues for the fantastic work that they have delivered."

LTPR has been working on Airbus narrow-body aircraft from Spirit Airlines since July 21st, with 10 aircraft overhauled so far. With the second line now being operational, LTPR plans to overhaul another 10 aircraft from Spirit and JetBlue by the end of 2015.

"We are pleased to be Lufthansa Technik's first customer in Puerto Rico," says Spirit CEO Ben Baldanza. "We've had a long history with them as they have provided excellent support on our Airbus fleet through inventory, parts repairs, reliability engineering support and, now, heavy maintenance support. We're excited about this new chapter expanding in Puerto Rico."

"As the largest airline in Puerto Rico, we are honored to share this milestone with Lufthansa Technik. With nearly one third of our network now located in Latin America and the Caribbean, it makes good business sense for us to work with a heavy maintenance business partner in the region," says Jeffrey Martin, executive vice president of operations, JetBlue. "By supporting Lufthansa Technik's expansion in Aguadilla, we are not only making an investment in our heavy maintenance plans, we're helping to ensure jobs which will lead to economic growth in the area."

The project has become a cornerstone of the growing Puerto Rico aerospace industry that already includes a dozen companies and employs approximately 3,500 people. Puerto Rico has made extraordinary efforts to build a strong business ecosystem revolving around this industry, with specific efforts to link local SMEs with companies such as LTPR. In addition, the new Aerospace and Aviation Institute of Puerto Rico, built next to the LTPR project in Aguadilla, has started offering training courses for future aviation mechanics.