Ontic and CFS Aero join forces to extend APU continuity

Ontic, which manufactures certified components for civil and military aircraft, has signed a partnership agreement with CFS Aeroproducts (CFS Aero), the UK-based engine and APU maintenance, repair, overhaul and engineering specialist. Under the agreement, the two companies will jointly explore engine and APU licensing, transition and support opportunities across the global aerospace market.

The agreement combines Ontic’s proven licensing model, commercial strength and global aftermarket reach with CFS Aero’s specialist engine and Auxiliary Power Unit (APU) engineering and MRO expertise, creating a new option for OEMs to house established engine powerplant programmes.

Continuing programme support

As engine manufacturers look to concentrate investment on next-generation propulsion technologies, many established engine and APU product lines continue to power aircraft that will remain in service for decades, with fleets that operators depend on and support obligations that stretch far into the future. This new collaboration between Ontic and CFS Aero is designed to answer that challenge, offering OEMs a safe and credible route to keep these programmes fully supported, while freeing their own engineering and production capacity for the platforms of tomorrow.

CFS Aero brings its specialist engine expertise to the collaboration, spanning engine and APU repair, overhaul, testing and asset support, together with the design authority and type certificate holder experience needed to sustain products across their full operational lives. Operating from a state-of-the-art UK facility and holding UK CAA, EASA and FAA approvals, the company has an established track record of successfully taking on engine product lines from OEMs and is widely respected across the industry for its technical depth.

Ontic provides the commercial engine, with an established licensing model through which it has transitioned more than 200 product lines from aerospace OEMs, alongside its supply chain capability and global customer support network that underpin its lifetime support of parts others originally developed.

Jean-Christophe Gallagher, Ontic Chief Executive Officer, said: “OEMs have told us they want the same continuity for their established engine and APU programmes that we already provide across hundreds of other product lines. That is precisely what this agreement unlocks.

“CFS Aero’s engineering and MRO pedigree is second to none. Combined with our licensing model and global aftermarket reach, we can give these programmes the investment and attention they deserve, and keep operators’ fleets supported for a lifetime of flight.”

David Newhouse, CFS Aero Chief Executive Officer, said: “This agreement brings together two businesses with complementary strengths. “We have spent years building deep technical expertise in engines and APUs, from repair and overhaul through to design authority responsibilities. Partnering with Ontic connects that expertise to the commercial scale, capital and OEM relationships needed to take on programmes of a size and ambition neither of us would pursue alone. It is an exciting step for both companies, and above all for the operators who rely on these products.”

Ontic is showcasing its solutions this week as an exhibitor at Farnborough International Airshow, 20th to 24th July.