Turkish Airlines Signs New Fleet Upgrade Contract

DALLAS - Turkish Airlines (TK) and Pratt & Whitney Canada, a division of Pratt & Whitney, have agreed to an eight-year maintenance and fleet improvement agreement. The 82 APS3200 auxiliary power units (APUs) on the airline's fleet of Airbus A320 planes are covered under the contract.

For the Airbus A320 generation of aircraft, the baseline APU of choice is the APS3200. It is intended to meet the environmental and performance standards for contemporary single-aisle aircraft. Additionally, the APU has a 180-minute Extended range Twin Operations (ETOPs) operation certification.

Additionally, Pratt & Whitney Canada's APS5000 APU, the first all-electric APU for major commercial aircraft in the industry, is installed in 25 Boeing B787 aircraft operated by Turkish Airlines.

Up to 25 new APS3200 APUs will be installed per year.

Comments from Pratt & Whitney Canada, Turkish Airlines

“This contract agreement builds on our long-standing relationship with Turkish Airlines and extends our formal agreement until 2030,” said Timothy Swail, vice president, Regional Aviation and APU Product Marketing & Sales, Pratt & Whitney Canada.

“Contracts such as this ensure the airline can optimize the availability of its aircraft and fully respect published flight schedules. The fleet renewal portion of the contract permits Turkish Airlines to renew its APS3200 fleet and benefit from the latest in technical improvements and longer time on wing.”

“We believe the eight-year duration of the contract will allow for the maintenance and gradual renewal of our APS3200 fleet in a cost-effective and efficient manner while increasing the fleet availability,” said Atilla Coşkun, senior vice president, Technical, at TK.

Featured image: Turkish Airlines TC-JPR Airbus A320-232. Photo: Alberto Cucini/Airways