Lufthansa Technik establishes new aircraft engine repair operation in Celbridge

Skilled employment
The new custom-built operation already employs 30 highly skilled personnel, with plans to more than double this number to 65 within the next two years, as the business grows.
Lufthansa Technik Turbine Shannon’s (LTTS) Mobile Engine Services (MES) operation is a 3,500sqm facility and in addition to repairing and servicing aircraft engines from its base in Celbridge, a technical team can be deployed to a customer site anywhere in the world to carry out the necessary work.

This project is supported by the Irish Government through IDA Ireland.  An Tánaiste Leo Varadkar TD said: “This is a significant and very welcome investment announcement by Lufthansa Technik, which will double its number of highly skilled jobs in the area to 65 in the next few years. It’s great to see the aviation sector growing again.

“This new mobile engine services (MES) facility in Kildare is strategically located to service aircraft engines for organisations across the EMEA region.
“Lufthansa Technik is a longstanding and significant employer in Ireland, and is prominent in the Shannon cluster. This news is particularly welcome given the challenges faced by the aviation sector during the pandemic and it is encouraging to see this level of investment as we look to the future. Thank you to Lufthansa Technik for its continued investment in our country and I wish the team in Kildare all the very best with this exciting new development.”

Speaking at an event to mark the official opening of MES Celbridge, Michael Malewski, CEO of LTTS said: “The aviation industry is rebuilding at pace following the significant impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the sector, and our business is focused on supporting our customers by growing our own capabilities and product offering.  Today’s announcement is good news for the aviation sector and good news for Ireland, as we actively look to invest in and expand our operation with more recruitment underway for both technical and administrative staff.”

With support from the IDA, Lufthansa Technik and its Irish subsidiary, LTTS have been building towards the opening of this facility since 2020 and Interim CEO of IDA Ireland, Mary Buckley said: “Today’s announcement by LTTS to open this new multimillion euro facility in Celbridge is very good news indeed.  The decision demonstrates the company’s confidence in the availability of a skilled and talented workforce in the region. IDA Ireland remains committed to winning jobs and investment in regional locations.  I wish LTTS continued success.”

The event was attended by Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Dara Calleary TD who said: “I am delighted that Lufthansa Technik has committed to a €28M investment in Kildare to establish a new aircraft engine repair operation in Celbridge. The state-of-the-art facility highlights the importance of our EU membership and geographical location and the investment will provide for additional skilled jobs in the locality, which is very welcome, and I know that there is a wealth of talent available in the area to fill these positions. I wish Lufthansa Technik continued success with this new exciting chapter and with their already significant presence in Shannon.”

Shannon, Dublin and Kildare 
Lufthansa Technik AG has had a presence in Shannon since 1992 and already employs 252 people in the region at Lufthansa Technik Turbine Shannon (LTTS), which specialises in the repair of components for specific aircraft engine types. A further 24 technical support personnel are located at the company’s offices in Dublin.

The official launch of MES in Celbridge increases Lufthansa Technik’s MES engine bay capacity in Ireland to ten, providing enhanced capabilities and facilities to customers in Ireland and across the EMEA region from its MES hubs in Ireland and Frankfurt.

The Irish based Mobile Engine Services (MES) facility is already future proofing the business, introducing capability to provide maintenance on newer engine types. While fully operational, it will undergo continuous development, backed by a multi-million Euro investment, as market demand grows.

Lufthansa Technik provides worldwide maintenance, repair and overall services for aircraft, engines and components.

Ireland is now part of a network of five Mobile Engine Services stations with the others located in Montreal (Canada), Tulsa (Oklahoma/USA), Frankfurt (Germany) and Shenzhen (China).

For more information: Lufthansa Technik Turbine Shannon (lufthansa-technik.com)