Ryanair 2010 Annual Report Download - page 65

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bus and rail tickets and will replace the existing manual ticket systems. Management expects to complete the
rollout of the EPOS devices by the end of August 2010.
MAINTENANCE AND REPAIRS
General
As part of its commitment to safety, Ryanair endeavors to hire qualified maintenance personnel,
provide proper training to such personnel, and maintain its aircraft in accordance with European industry
standards. While Ryanair seeks to maintain its fleet in a cost-effective manner, management does not seek to
extend Ryanair’s low-cost operating strategy to the areas of maintenance, training or quality control.
Ryanair’s quality assurance department deals with oversight of all maintenance activities in accordance
with Part 145. The European Aviation Safety Agency (“EASA”), which established Part 145, came into being
on September 28, 2003, through the adoption of Regulation (EC) No. 1592/2002 of the European Parliament,
and its standards superseded the previous Joint Aviation Authority (“JAA”) requirements. See “Government
RegulationRegulatory Authorities.”
Ryanair is itself an EASA Part 145-approved maintenance contractor and provides its own routine
aircraft maintenance and repair services. Ryanair also performs certain checks on its aircraft, including pre-
flight, daily, and transit checks at some of its bases, as well as A-checks at its Dublin, London (Stansted),
Glasgow (Prestwick) and Bremen facilities. Since December 2003, Ryanair has operated a two-bay hangar
facility at its base at Glasgow (Prestwick) in Scotland, where it carries out both A-checks and C-checks on the
fleet of Boeing 737-800 aircraft. The facility performs two C-checks per week, enabling Ryanair to perform
most of the heavy maintenance that is currently required on its Boeing 737-800 fleet in-house. Ryanair also
expects to complete the construction of a new three-bay maintenance hangar at Glasgow (Prestwick) airport by
October 2010, which should accommodate some heavy maintenance work.
Ryanair opened a five-bay hangar and stores facility at its London (Stansted) airport base in October
2008 to allow Ryanair to carry out additional line maintenance on its expanding fleet. This facility also
incorporates two flight simulator devices with space and provisions for two more, together with a cabin crew
trainer and associated training rooms. Ryanair carries out checks and line maintenance in its single-bay aircraft
hangar facility in Bremen. Ryanair has recently entered into a 30-year sole-tenancy agreement with Frankfurt
(Hahn) airport to occupy a two-bay hangar and stores facility that also incorporates a two-bay simulator-training
center. This facility is undergoing construction. It is expected to be completed by January 2011, allowing
Ryanair to carry out additional line maintenance.
Maintenance and repair services that may become necessary while an aircraft is located at some of the
other airports served by Ryanair are provided by other Part 145-approved contract maintenance providers.
Aircraft return each evening to Ryanair’s bases, where they are examined by Ryanair’s approved engineers or,
in the case of Brussels (Charleroi), Stockholm (Skvasta), Rome (Ciampino), Frankfurt (Hahn), Milan
(Bergamo), Marseille, Barcelona (Girona), Madrid, Alicante, Dusseldorf (Weeze), Kaunas, Bristol, Brindisi,
Bari, Pescara, Trapini, Bologna and Cagliari, by local Part 145-approved companies.
Heavy Maintenance
As noted above, Ryanair currently has sufficient capacity to be able to carry out all of the routine
maintenance work required on its Boeing 737-800 fleet itself. However, Ryanair occasionally contracts with
outside maintenance providers for some heavy maintenance services that it cannot accommodate in its own
facilities. In particular, Ryanair enters into short-term, ad hoc contracts with reputable Part 145-approved
suppliers of heavy maintenance in the U.K. and Europe, such as ATC Lasham, for the carrying-out of the heavy
maintenance overhauls currently required on its relatively new fleet.
Ryanair has entered into a contract to build a new three-bay maintenance hangar at Glasgow
(Prestwick) airport to accommodate the additional maintenance requirements that it expects to arise beginning in
winter 2010 due to the aging and expansion of its fleet. This facility is already under construction and is
expected to be completed by October 2010, as is noted above.