With a record year in the offing for 2012, the three-year worldwide market for overhauls of International Aero Engines V2500 medium turbofans is expected to top $6 billion, half of which will come from carriers in the U.S., China and the U.K.

The first-stage engine blade on one of Delta Air Lines' fleet of 152 CFM CFM56-7 engines may cost around $1,000, but the ramifications of unmitigated pitting and cracking can cost much more in unscheduled maintenance. To prevent this corrosion pitting, fretting, stress corrosion cracking or foreign object damage from causing major problems in its fleet of 152 CFM56-7 engines, Delta TechOps partnered with Lambda Technologies of Cincinnati to develop a technology called low-plasticity burnishing (LPB).

The FAA's new proposed repair station regulations appear to mix much-needed improvements with bureaucratic burdens that may ultimately increase the complexity of Part 145 certification and compliance, initial analysis of the major proposal reveals.

Transferring leased aircraft between different regulatory authorities can cause headaches and add maintenance costs.

Frankfurt Tight Space

Welcome to the first Aviation Week & Space Technology MRO Edition! Each monthly edition is for readers like you who are involved in the airline aftermarket. Overhaul & Maintenance readers will find the same editorial elements, except in a different order—plus you get this week's regular AW&ST. We embedded two data-rich media extras in the iPad version of the magazine, which is available to you free through Zinio (www.zinio.com/apps). AW&ST subscribers who register their subscriptions can view the extras at AviationWeek.com/awst.

Airbus's interest in setting up a U.S. final assembly line for the A320 may seem like the aerospace equivalent of painting the white roses red, but there are larger business issues at stake than just trying to fool U.S. buyers into thinking they are “buying American.”

A week before the Farnborough International Airshow, Boeing officials are not saying whether they will break a 28-year-old rule and fly a 787 during the week-long biennial exhibition. The 787 debuted at the last Farnborough outing in 2010 and was at the Paris air show last year, but at both events it was in a static display.