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Airbus and Air France-KLM launch a joint venture for A350 component support

Airbus and Air France-KLM have pooled their A350 spare parts and repair operations into a single venture that already covers more than five hundred aircraft.

28 October 2026

Airbus A350
A Airbus A350, for illustration. Not the aircraft in this story. Photo: DS28, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Airbus and Air France-KLM confirmed on 28 October 2026 that they have finalized Alpha Component Solutions, a fifty-fifty joint venture that pools the companies' A350 component support operations into a single business. Airbus said the new entity combines its Flight Hours Services component pool with the engineering and maintenance arm of Air France-KLM, Air France Industries KLM Engineering and Maintenance, known as AFI KLM E&M.

Alpha Component Solutions runs a shared access pool of A350 components, along with maintenance, supply chain management and repair services, available to A350 operators worldwide rather than only to the Air France-KLM fleet. Airbus said the venture already holds support contracts covering more than five hundred aircraft. The transfer of the two companies' combined component activities into the new entity took effect on 30 September 2026, following European Commission clearance in April 2026. The partners first announced exclusive talks toward the venture in September 2023 and signed the agreement in December 2024.

In plain terms

A component pool is a shared stock of spare parts that several airlines can draw from instead of each one stocking its own. A bigger shared pool usually means a part is available faster when an aircraft needs one, because more operators are feeding and drawing from the same stock.

Airbus and Air France-KLM describe the venture as an independent business rather than one dedicated to the Air France-KLM fleet, so other A350 operators are expected to be able to join the pool on commercial terms.

On the line

If your fleet flies the A350 and uses either Airbus Flight Hours Services or AFI KLM E&M for component support today, expect a transition notice about the merged pool. Confirm which contract and point of contact now covers your aircraft before your next scheduled component exchange.

More on this type: Airbus A350 fleet brief

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