TAM MRO, TAM Airlines’ business unit for the maintenance, repair and overhaul of aircraft, has received its accreditation from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), authorizing line maintenance services to be undertaken in the Brazilian cities of Porto Alegre, Recife, Salvador and Fortaleza on all Airbus A330-200 and A 330-300 aircraft registered in Europe.

The MRO unit is now qualified to perform the aircraft check-up and inspections (transit check, daily check, ETOPS pre-flight inspection) and corrective measures thereof. ETOPS (Extended Twin Engine Operations) is the concept for two-engine aircraft extended operations, and aims to ensure the reliability of the aircraft to operate on routes without ground support for up to 180 minutes, for example, on transoceanic flights.

“EASA Certification of our line maintenance is an important measure to increase the specialized services portfolio offered by TAM MRO to the international market and is also  the recognition of the excellence of the maintenance performed at the Technological Centre at Sao Carlos [Sao Paulo]," explains Ruy Amparo, TAM Operations and Maintenance Vice-President.

The EASA accreditation is part of the project started in October 2010 by TAM MRO, located in the company’s Technological Centre, in order to meet the demand from European operators for line maintenance services. For the next stage of the process, the accreditation of the line maintenance offered in the following location is being requested from EASA: Sao Paulo/Guarulhos, Campinas/Viracopos, Rio de Janeiro/Galeao and Brasilia.