Archives Case Studies

VIP aircraft owners not only expect a luxurious interior but also demand a first-class exterior finish, an eye-catcher on the runways of Saint Barts or St. Moritz. But even by VIP aircraft standards, this livery was particularly special. The aircraft owner had something unique in mind — they wanted their plane painted to match their luxury car!

The colorimetry specialists at Mankiewicz Coating Solutions accepted the challenge and recreated the exact colour tones of the exquisite vehicle. The result was a sparkling rose gold, with additional blue and brown tones, all implemented in a high-performance aircraft coating system that can withstand the harsh conditions of flight operations for many years.

As well as expertly matching the colour shades, the paint tones also had to blend seamlessly into each other – not an easy task – because this kind of aircraft painting is all handwork, there is no automation used. Besides the challenges of the special livery, the aircraft also had to be airborne again in a very short time, adding to the complexity of the project.

The experts at MAAS Aviation and Mankiewicz Coating Solutions worked together to test the paints and plan the ideal application process, to ensure the job was completed to the highest of standards. The end result speaks for itself: a seamless colour gradient with intensely glittering micas and a very smooth VIP high-gloss finish.

Environmental responsibility is an important factor that is at the forefront of MAAS Aviation’s business strategy, an ethos shared by its progressive airline customer Widerøe.

Widerøe is the largest regional airline operating in the Nordic countries, and is committed to supporting a fossil-free technological transition in aviation. Their ambition is to become one of the world’s first airlines to be nearly emissions-free and they have set themselves the goal of having their first commercial fossil-free routes in operation by 2028.

In the meantime, Widerøe are taking steps to reduce emissions from their current flights with a number of initiatives, including transitioning their fleet to the latest paint system technologies. Working with MAAS, their high-performance aerospace coatings not only look superb but are now also delivering great environmental benefits.

The introduction of non-chromate pre-treatments, plus the latest primers and basecoat clearcoat systems, are in themselves more environmentally friendly products but they also deliver huge adhesion improvements. This means that Widerøe aircraft won’t need to be painted as often in the future, which is a positive step forward in the sustainability of their fleet.

These systems also reduce the weight of the paint on the aircraft as they require less coats to achieve the same result; just one coat for the newer basecoat clearcoat system compared to two or three coats for older systems. This not only reduces the amount of material used, but also reduces the overall weight of the aircraft. Both of these advantages contribute to more sustainable operations by lowering aircraft fuel consumption and thereby reducing CO² emissions, which makes the overall solution as lean as it can possibly be.

MAAS Aviation’s relationship with Ryanair spans more than four decades, dating back to when the airline was founded in the 1980’s. MAAS has significantly grown during this time, and Ryanair has become Europe’s largest airline group – operating over 3,000 flights per day. Both companies have a strong focus on quality, attention to detail and the highest delivery standards, and it is these shared values that has enabled their positive partnership to thrive throughout this time.

Forty years on, and MAAS still paints Ryanair’s aircraft and is responsible for ensuring the high-quality appearance of the carrier’s fleet of over 500 Boeing jets.

Airlines place huge emphasis on differentiating themselves through the use of innovative cabin interior products and by having an equally innovative high-quality external livery applied to their aircraft. Ryanair is very proud of its fleet and demands the highest of standards in terms of gloss-retention and colour stability, as well as overall longevity of the coating’s performance.

“Our relationship with MAAS is built on consistently delivering an outstanding quality product, on time, every time. With the Ryanair Group fleet now standing at over 500 aircraft, it is essential to have suppliers like MAAS that have grown alongside us that can meet and exceed our exacting standards. We look forward to many more years working together as the fleet grows to over 600 aircraft by 2025.”
Adam Hale, Head of Base Maintenance, Ryanair

In December 2023, MAAS announced a top-secret repainting project it had been working on: the creation of Embraer’s latest Profit Hunter livery – the ‘Tech Eagle’. It was a challenging and technically complex project but MAAS performed flawlessly, delivering the stunning aircraft with an immaculate finish that had real wow factor.

An experienced and highly skilled team of 38 painters worked around the clock shifts for 15 days to bring this exceptional aircraft livery to life. The success of the project is testament to the professional and supportive collaboration between the experts at Embraer, MAAS and AkzoNobel Aerospace Coatings.

The iconic Tech Eagle design is the latest predator-themed livery from Embraer, following their famous shark, lion and snow leopard aircraft. The striking paint scheme reflects the E195-E2’s high-tech features and outstanding performance, flying efficiently and quietly like an eagle.

“Great artwork continues to emerge from The Netherlands, the home of Rembrandt, Vermeer and others.”
Guy Douglas, Director of Corporate Communications at Embraer Commercial Aviation

“It’s amazing! We are very happy with the results and process.”
André Machado, Global Creative Director Embraer Commercial Aviation

For more information on this exciting project, read the full press release.

The dedicated paint shop support for Airbus is directly tied to the OEM’s A320 family programmes in Europe and the United States. In 2021, the Company also qualified to provide exterior finishing services on the newly established A220 programme in the United States.

Our timeline with Airbus began in 2011 at our Maastricht Aachen Airport location in Maastricht. Then in 2012 we opened a single-aisle paint shop dedicated to Airbus at Hamburg-Finkenwerder Airport in Germany, followed by a second in 2016, and a third in 2018.

In 2016 we also opened a single-aisle paint shop dedicated to Airbus at Brookley Field in Mobile, Alabama, United States and in 2021 we established two additional single-aisle painting halls exclusively for Airbus at the facility.

Livery diversity is a hallmark of the various Airbus programmes we undertake in Europe and the United States. We have applied liveries for American Airlines, Delta Airlines, Frontier Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Breeze Airways, Spirit Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, EasyJet, Lufthansa, China Southern Airlines, China Eastern Airlines, IndiGo, Vueling, Wizz Air, Aeroflot, Air Canada, and many more.

All our dedicated Airbus facilities are AS9100 and ISO 14001 certified and we apply a variety of paint systems, including those manufactured by AkzoNobel Aerospace Coatings, PPG Aerospace, and Mankiewicz. We also install the ADHETEC ADHECAL decorative adhesive product on their aircraft. (As shown VTP and aft fuselage for the Frontier Airlines fleet.)

Air Lease Corporation, the US-based aircraft leasing company has a fleet of 300+ aircraft and is a leading global aircraft lessor. ALC is confident that MAAS Aviation will deliver the highest quality and consistent TAT and this is the basis of a trusted relationship that has been established for more than twenty-five years. Recently, MAAS completed an Embraer 175 and a A320NEO in Vistara livery for ALC at our Maastricht facility where Part 145 services were supplied by Lufthansa Technik. However, the majority of aircraft painting programmes for ALC are co-ordinated with our MRO partners, Fokker Technics at Woensdrecht.

The most critical factor for leasing companies is the TAT for each base maintenance check and subsequent painting project. This must be met to enable the lessor to deliver the aircraft to its new operator in accordance with their lease terms. The new operator is normally on-site to accept the transitioning asset in their brand livery so strict procedures guided by a focus on teamwork and partnership are essential.

MAAS’ technologically and environmentally advanced facilities are a natural complement to base maintenance MROs seeking to offer outstanding aircraft asset redeliveries.

MAAS Aviation’s ultra-modern facility in Kaunas is a perfect example. The 40% increase in MAAS Aviation’s European MRO capacity that has been delivered by the new paint shop enables the Company to service more airlines and lessors particularly during peak seasons.

The new twin-bay narrow body paint shop is capable of accommodating up to two A321 sized aircraft simultaneously and is the first of its kind in Lithuania. Situated adjacent to FL Technics’ MRO facilities at the airport, it enables customers to combine base maintenance, painting and parking/storage in one place which makes the location an attractive proposition for airlines and leasing companies. It minimises aircraft ground time which offers economic value and less complexity for operators and lessors.

“Integrations with trusted partners, such as MAAS Aviation, to deliver complex MRO (base maintenance) services, covering nose-to-tail aircraft delivery, painting and remarketing projects is a key focus for us from 2021 onwards.”
Saulius Bajarunas, COO – FL Technics.

VVIP operator of ACJ319s (Airbus Corporate Jets), K5 Aviation approached MAAS Aviation to paint an initial aircraft at the Maastricht paint shop in The Netherlands.

MAAS’ relationship with K5 began at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic which brought considerable logistics challenges for aircraft/flight crew movements, and the supply of materials. The MAAS team helped the customer overcome these difficulties to ensure the deadlines could be achieved.

The expectations of VVIP aircraft operators like K5 are extremely high and MAAS’ understanding of the demanding project received high praise for quality, flexibility and particularly customer service.

The smooth painting programme for the first ACJ319 was quickly followed by two further aircraft from K5.

“It is one of the cleanest, well-appointed paint facilities I have ever seen, and the paint team have performed to exceptional standards.”
Erik Scheidt – Director K5-Aviation GmbH

MAAS is very proud to continue its great relationship with K5 Aviation, having completed a stunning ‘commercial plus’ repaint of this aircraft for the operator in February 2024.

A Boeing 737-800 owned by Sojitz Aircraft Leasing BV initially undertook maintenance with FL Technics at their facility in Kaunas. On completion, the aircraft came into the new MAAS paint shop for a full strip and repaint displaying new operator livery for transition to American ultra-low-cost passenger and cargo operator, Sun Country Airlines.

MAAS worked closely with the teams from Sojitz, FL Technics and Sun Country on the timing of the project which was implemented during COVID-19 lock down and posed obvious challenges. Mylars (self-adhesive transfers) supplied from the US were used on the project to ensure fleet continuity for complex livery lines. Part 145/CRS was performed by FL Technics in the MAAS hangar.

“MAAS Kaunas are everything an aircraft lessor could want from an aircraft paint facility. Their preparation, execution, paint finish and customer support were excellent. Combined with an on time and on budget project, I would highly recommend them for your future narrowbody aircraft painting requirements.”
Daniel Preedy, Technical Manager – Sojitz Aircraft Leasing B.V.

MAAS Aviation worked closely on the VVIP specification for a Boeing 767-300 comprising a full strip and repaint to refresh the original livery. We worked with GlobalJet and Jet Aviation to ensure the very highest quality VVIP finish on the aircraft and the MAAS team produced a daily progress report, including photographs of each stage, so that this could be relayed to the owner of the aircraft and project team.

This aircraft was completed on a 20-day TAT during a heatwave in the Netherlands where the temperatures were consistently over 30 degrees for the duration of the input. However, the MAAS paint technicians were unimpacted as our state-of-the-art facility is designed to cope effectively with extreme temperatures.

Flexibility and speed exemplified the MAAS difference. With VVIP customers it is often difficult to plan too far ahead and GlobalJet identified a very short window of opportunity. The full paint workscope was completed in time to meet both their strict timeframe and quality expectations.

Certification for Release to Service (CRS) was supported by Jet Aviation.