2026 Presentations:
AeroEngines Americas
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Thank you for attending this year's Aero-Engines Americas conference. We hope you enjoyed the event and are already implementing key takeaways.
Below you will find the presentation slides submitted to us. To launch the files simply click on the speakers’ names. Please note that any missing presentations were not made available.
Aero-Engines Americas
Tuesday, February 10, 2026
Opening Remarks from Aviation Week Network
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Opening Keynote from Chromalloy: Navigating Today’s Engine Maintenance Landscape: Exploring Solutions in an Evolving Aftermarket
Today’s aviation landscape presents an unprecedented convergence of challenges across legacy, midlife, and next‑generation engine platforms —all requiring concurrent capacity and capabilities. The industry faces simultaneous pressure to maintain older assets, support maturing fleets, and prepare for the future at a time when capacity, labor, and material constraints continue to tighten. Chromalloy CEO Chris Celtruda will explore ways operators, lessors, and MRO partners are adapting, innovating, and investing to stay ahead in this demanding environment.
Presentation: Aviation Week Network Market Forecast An exclusive insight into the outputs from Aviation Week’s 2026 Fleet and MRO Forecast. Updating you on critical market trends in the Americas including shop visit forecasts, utilization and fleet deliveries. |
The Power of Partnership- Transforming Aviation Challenges into Strategic Wins
The aviation industry continues to experience turbulence with supply chain challenges, parts shortages, workforce pressures and operational uncertainty. We will explore how key stakeholders have turned challenges into opportunities by leveraging collaboration, innovation and strategic planning to thrive in an increasingly fluid market. How are maintenance (e.g. hospital shop visit vs full overhaul) and procurement strategies (e.g. insourcing/nearshoring) evolving to address ongoing supply chain disruptions and ensure operational continuity? How are airlines, MROs, OEMs, and lessors working together to improve communication and align priorities to address both current and future maintenance demand?
- Moderator: James Pozzi, MRO Editor EMEA, Aviation Week Network
- Justin Bevington, Director of TechOps Strategy and Planning, Delta Air Lines
- John McKirdy, SVP of Engine Component Repair Strategy and Growth, Barnes Aerospace
- Caroline Vandedrinck, SVP of Materials and Services, Willis Lease Finance Corporation
- Alex Youngs, VP of Marketing, Commercial Engines, StandardAero
| Ramco Systems Hosted Session: AI-Powered Smart Engine Shops- Optimizing Capacity, People, and Parts AI-powered Smart Engine Shops transform engine MRO by intelligently orchestrating capacity, workforce, and parts. With predictive planning, digital task cards, automated job sequencing, and real-time visibility, AI drives measurable gains in throughput and turnaround time. This session highlights how incremental digital improvements deliver significant efficiency and reliability across engine maintenance operations.
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Evolution of Propulsion- Program Updates and Market Considerations
As the aviation industry transitions to next-gen platforms which are poised to redefine operational efficiency, questions remain about the durability and cost-effectiveness of some of these platforms. What specific improvements are expected from the engine performance improvement packages such as; GTF Advantage, GTF Hot Section Plus, LEAP improvements, RISE program, and UltraFan? What’s next in engine development and how might these new programs influence operator's fleet planning, aircraft OEM future designs, the aftermarket and MRO landscape? What does this mean for the MRO transition and the potential acceleration of moving away from mature fleets?
- Moderator: Guy Norris, Senior Staff Writer, Aviation Week Network
- Gustavo Benitez, VP of Business Development for the Americas, SR Technics
- Roy de Vries, Director of Engine Product, Air France Industries KLM Engineering & Maintenance
- Stephanie Newman, VP of Business Development- Airframers, Rolls-Royce
- Jeffrey Shaknaitis, Future of Flight Airline Leader, GE Aerospace
The Future of Material Sourcing in Aviation- Balancing Cost, Availability, and Innovation From new parts to USM, PMA and repair innovations, this session will examine the strategies being employed to address material challenges and maintain asset availability. How are key stakeholders' material purchasing strategies changing? How have parts repair providers improved their turnaround time and what investments in parts repair capabilities have they made? What role does repair development play in addressing durability challenges for LEAP and GTF engines? How are attitudes to the use of PMA parts evolving?
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Closing Remarks from Aviation Week Network
- Georgia Halliday, Senior Conference Producer, Aviation Week Network
Wednesday, February 11, 2026
Opening Remarks from Aviation Week Network
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Presentation: Aviation Week Data Blast- Retirements
With a slow supply chain and OEM production issues, aircraft retirements have slowed dramatically over the past few years. Take a quick look at Aviation Week Network’s retirement forecast with a backdrop of a historical perspective. See the degree of impact these changes have created in the market.
The Juniority Dilemma- How Aviation Can Close the Skills Gap With skilled labor shortages continuing to constrain capacity in 2026 and with fleets growing worldwide, the industry's "juniority problem" requires new and renewed focus. Where are the talent gaps and what are we doing to alleviate them? How are organizations addressing the knowledge transfer challenge with rising employee retirements and what role can technology play in accelerating training and knowledge transfer? How are educational partnerships evolving to better align training with industry needs? What initiatives or workplace reforms are proving successful to attract, retain and develop skilled workers, incentivize local talent or even draw back lost local talent? Can aviation learn from other industries facing similar workforce challenges?
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Fireside Chat: Voice of the Airline - Mastering the Mixed Fleet Balancing Act
As airlines across the US operate increasingly mixed fleets of mature and next-generation engines, optimizing maintenance resources, spare engine allocation, and technical expertise has become a critical challenge. Hear directly from Southwest Airlines on what they are doing to future proof their maintenance strategies as retirement horizons extend. How do you see the balance between mature and next-generation engine maintenance evolving over the next five years and what are the biggest challenges associated with the transition?
- Moderator: Lee Ann Shay, Executive Editor, MRO and Business Aviation, Aviation Week Network
- Ken Barone, Director of Fleet Asset Management, Southwest Airlines
From Data to Decisions- AI in Engine Maintenance Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming engine maintenance, from predictive analytics to automated inspections. While AI promises to reduce costs and improve efficiency, questions remain about its real-world impact and adoption challenges. To what extent is AI having tangible results and what are the biggest barriers to AI adoption in engine maintenance? How could AI be used to determine an optimal engine removal schedule or predict which parts will require repairs?
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Closing Remarks from Aviation Week Network and End of Conference
- Georgia Halliday, Senior Conference Producer, Aviation Week Network