The Chief Technical Officer (CTO) of British Airways, Andy Best, delivered the airline keynote speech on the first day of MRO Europe 2025 from the Excel London exhibition center.
Delivering an overview of British Airways over the past year, Best told a gathered industry audience that not one engine had been delivered on time in 2025 by its main engine providers.
“This is the reality, we’re seeing it. Those failures just pass risk into our operation. Of course we have to manage the risk. We get around it,” said Best
He added: “It undermines our commitments that we have with our customers. When a customer flies with British Airways, we basically sign a contract with them, to get from point A to point B safely”.
Furthermore, Best said that British Airways’ confidence with the aftermarket in the service provision is “not great”.
“We are not happy,” said Best.
Best said his speech was not designed to be a “whinge-fest” but a call for everyone, including British Airways, to work together to improve the situation.
Best invited stakeholders that want to “transform and make change” to work with British Airways and help move the industry forward.
The aviation industry has been suffering for some time with a severe capacity shortage to repair and maintain engines, raising the pressure on airlines and their operations.
The MRO Europe conference runs from October 14-15, 2025, while the MRO Europe exhibition runs from October 15-16, 2025.
AeroTime will be attending all three days of MRO Europe – get in touch.