At Air France-KLM, repairs beat replacements with parts missing

From faulty ovens to missing engine parts to malfunctioning seat dividers, Air France-KLM is bearing the brunt of the still rampant supply-chain bottlenecks — and Chief Executive Officer Ben Smith says it’s costing the airline.

“We’ve got airplanes that are missing parts, cabins that are missing parts, engines — missing parts,” Smith said in Paris at a company event. “So either these airplanes have to be grounded or we have to spend more money on overhauling or redoing the parts ourselves. So that’s very frustrating.”

Smith pointed to the sliding doors that turn a business-class berth into an enclosed cocoon as one component that’s been prone to faults, meaning the airline can’t sell tickets on some of its most lucrative seats. Demand for premium cabin flying surged after the pandemic and has remained strong even as the lower end of the market becomes more price conscious. Summer is the busiest travel season for airlines and typically when European carriers make their money for the year.

If it’s any solace to Smith, such shortcomings aren’t unique to just Air France-KLM. Deutsche Lufthansa AG was late installing its new Allegris cabin seats, and even once they arrived the new layout was incomplete: the first-class cabins have been delayed, meaning the German carrier has temporarily been forced to fit the more humble economy seat into the vacant space. 

Any respite is unlikely to be just around the corner. Airbus SE CEO Guillaume Faury said in an interview this month that supply-chain constraints will probably haunt the industry for 2-3 years. The International Air Transport Association also expects the problems to persist into 2026. 

As a result of the part supply issues, Air France-KLM has decided to have double the number of backup airplanes available over the summer than it did last year, Smith said. The company is also repairing appliances such as ovens that would normally be replaced.

“It’s costing us more money, more time, and it’s not ideal because it’ll break down more often,” Smith said.