05/15/98
Name Selected for New Joint Venture Company Formed by United Airlines, Air Canada and Lufthansa Technik

AirLiance Materials to be Name of New Major Supplier of Pre-owned Materials to the Airline Industry

Chicago, IL (May 15, 1998) - AirLiance Materials has been selected as the name of the new joint venture company formed by United Airlines, Air Canada and Lufthansa Technik to buy and sell aircraft materials in the secondary spare parts market.

The decision comes just days after the company named David Sisson as CEO and president of the organization. According to Mr. Sisson, AirLiance Materials was selected "because we felt that the name best reflects what we consider to be the core strength of the company: it is an alliance by airlines for the benefit of airlines."

Mr. Sisson added that, "The company's charter is to be the best low cost provider of pre-owned parts to the global airline community. In order to achieve that, we will take advantage of economies of scale generated by the partners to acquire and offer materials at a savings to airlines and MROs (Maintenance and Repair Organizations) around the world."

Mr. Sisson also noted that, "More important than price is the assurance of complete traceability and quality of parts. Since all AirLiance Materials parts come exclusively from the partner airlines' inventory, all parts are traceable to the previous FAR 121 operators."

AirLiance Materials fully complies with FAA Advisory Circular 20-62D guidelines for parts identification and documentation. In addition, the company is presently acquiring DAR authority to certify parts for domestic U.S. and international sales, and is seeking the ISO 9001:2000 quality standard.

Under its charter, AirLiance Materials acts as the exclusive buyer and seller of aftermarket material for its partner airlines. Currently, United Airlines, Air Canada and Lufthansa Technik trade nearly $100 million (U.S.) pre-owned material each year, representing close to 10% of the present available market.

United Airlines, Air Canada and Lufthansa German Airlines combined operate more than 1,000 aircraft and generate 17% of the world's available seat miles. For more information or to arrange an interview, contact: Michael King, King Group Public Relations, telephone 805-462-3000 (U.S.), fax 805-462-3002, email mking@kinggroup.com.

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