by Elsie Clark | Sep 18, 2025 | AI & ML, Flight Ops IT, Innovation
Korean Air and Boeing will partner on predictive analytics for proactive fleet maintenance, they announced at the MRO Asia-Pacific 2025 conference in Singapore.
The South Korean national carrier has established an early lead in predictive maintenance, setting up a dedicated team in 2023 that has since developed an in-house MRO solution. The partnership with Boeing will focus on advancing data-driven maintenance from this foundation to optimise fleet availability.
Chan Woo Jung, Senior Vice President and Head of Maintenance and Engineering at Korean Air, said:
We have made substantial progress in enhancing fleet reliability through our Smart MRO strategy, specifically by leveraging predictive maintenance. This strategic collaboration with Boeing will build on that success, taking our capabilities to the next level.
As we continue to expand our fleet, this partnership is key to enhancing our maintenance operations.
The announcement comes after Korean Air signed the largest-ever single aircraft order in history in late August 2025. 103 new Boeing airliners of different types are set to replenish and expand the airline’s fleet as they merge with Asiana Airlines.
The new predictive maintenance partnership with Boeing will support the US$36 billion investment, ensuring that Korean Air get the most out of their new aircraft while minimising passenger disruption.
Boeing’s suite of intelligence tools includes the Insight Accelerator, a custom predictive maintenance solution that helps avoid flight delays and minimises aircraft time on ground (AOG). Powered by machine learning (ML) algorithms, it is the first tool of its kind to launch on the MRO market.
Join us at Aerospace Tech Week 2026, where our dedicated MRO IT panels will be discussing the future of predictive maintenance in aviation.
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by Elsie Clark | Sep 11, 2025 | Innovation
A new global survey of executives has highlighted key findings as the aerospace industry prepares for Industry 5.0
The Future Ready Skies Study 2025 from Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) surveyed over 300 European and North American executives across the aerospace value chain. The results revealed how the industry is planning for the next decade as key trends, including artificial intelligence (AI), digital twins, and advanced air mobility (AAM), dramatically reshape the supply chain.
Mixed progress on aerospace automation
While automation remains a priority, executive predict that 60% of their operations will still require human involvement in the next five to seven years. From a maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO) perspective, only 2% of providers believed their service would be autonomous by 2030, while more than half expected to be using predictive analytics and digitally assisted diagnostics. Around a third of MRO experts predict that they will see a return on investment (ROI) in tech within the next three years.
Trust in delegating supply decisions agentic AI remains mixed. While 6% of respondents said they were already deploying agentic AI in this area, 37% said regulatory, compliance, or trust issues prevented them from doing so, and a further 45% said they needed more transparency and control before implementing such a solution.
AI was nevertheless rated as the technology with the greatest potential to reshape aerospace factories by 2035, followed by digital twins, robotics and cobotics, quantum computing, and edge computing.
Commercial AAM set for takeoff
As more AAM projects reach the commercialisation phase, the TCS study illustrated that aerospace executives are committed to developing the sector. 88% of respondents said they had implemented a strategy for engaging the AAM market, with 16% of those executives already engaged in developing projects, and 54% actively building a product or platform for AAM.
The results of the survey emphasised several priorities for the aerospace industry moving forward: achieving a digital transformation, creating the infrastructure for AAM, and building resilient supply chains.
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by Elsie Clark | Sep 9, 2025 | Flight Ops IT
Air Peace and Embraer are collaborating on a new maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO) centre in Lagos, Nigeria.
The project was initially proposed two years ago, but is now ready for take off. Air Peace and the Brazilian aircraft manufacturer will start construction on the new facility later this month, with operations expected to commence next year.
An Embraer spokesperson said:
[We] will use [our] experience in the commercial MRO industry to provide advice on aspects related to hangar and capacity planning, tooling/GSE needs, technical training avenues, leadership matrix and KPIs, to list a few.
The OEMs expertise will help maintain Air Peace’s Embraer aircraft, as well as other fleet types in their arsenal.
The new centre will not only support Air Peace, but other airlines across Africa. Egyptair, Ethiopian Airlines, and Royal Air Maroc are among the few African airlines who operate MRO centres within the continent. According to the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, the country spends US$2.5 billion on offshore aircraft maintenance each year.
This lack of infrastructure is not only expensive, but protracts downtime for African aircraft. It also diverts resources away from a native aviation industry that is experiencing significant growth: according to IATA, Africa’s aviation market is expected to double by 2044. The Air Peace/Embraer MRO centre therefore represents a significant milestone in the development of West African aviation.
Join us at Aerospace Tech Week 2026, where we’ll be discussing the future of MRO, from predictive analytics to digital twins.
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by Jessica Brownlow | Aug 15, 2025 | MRO IT
Supply chain strain. Aircraft on the ground. Rising costs.
The aviation industry is still dealing with the long tail of disruption post-COVID-and effective MRO inventory management may be the key to resilience.
In this conversation, Micheál Armstrong, CEO of Armac Systems, breaks down the challenges airlines are facing today, and how smart use of data, systems, and people can unlock huge gains in efficiency and availability.
“Some parts come back quickly, others might as well be scrapped. You can’t rely on old provisioning models anymore.”
With lead times increasing on both new parts and repairs, airlines are being forced to hold aircraft longer, delay retirements, and extend leases. But forward-thinking organizations are fighting back with smarter planning and more collaborative supplier engagement.
“It’s not just about average lead times anymore. You need real-time insight and supplier-level collaboration.”
From applying engineering strategy to part interchangeability, to making better decisions around upgrades and modifications, Micheál shares how operators are shifting from reactive to proactive.
He also discusses how technology is making this possible:
- Proactive data analysis to detect issues early
- Advanced planning with platforms like ReASSIST
- Using inventory systems as decision-support tools, not just process managers
And the next frontier? AI, machine learning, and data science.
“These algorithms aren’t new-what’s new is we finally have the people, the mindset, and the computing power to apply them.”
He explains how the rise of digital natives, data science teams, and cloud computing is driving real-world adoption of AI in aviation-not just buzzwords, but actual, scalable value.
🎥 Watch the full interview to learn how airlines and MROs can shift from lagging to leading in supply chain resilience and tech adoption.
Questions asked include:
- What’s the current state of the aviation supply chain?
- How are repair and replacement delays affecting operations?
- How can inventory management systems help mitigate risk?
- What role does technology play in improving visibility and planning?
- How is AI transforming decision-making in MRO and parts management?
- What role do events and collaboration play in driving industry innovation?
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