Pratt & Whitney and Air New Zealand Announce Expansion at Christchurch Engine Centre

Pratt & Whitney and Air New Zealand hosted a groundbreaking ceremony for a $150 million, 14,000 square meter expansion of its Christchurch Engine Centre. The expansion will add maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) capabilities for the Pratt & Whitney GTF engine in New Zealand, with capacity for up to 140 GTF engine overhauls planned annually by 2032.

Construction of the facility expansion begins this month, and the first GTF engine overhaul is expected in the fourth quarter of 2026. The Christchurch Engine Centre was founded in 1948 by Air New Zealand. In 2001, the airline and Pratt & Whitney partnered to develop the joint venture, focusing on the maintenance, repair and overhaul of JT8D then V2500 engines.