Lufthansa Technik Malta is celebrating its 15th anniversary with the participation of the Lufthansa Orchestra. CEO Marcus Motschenbacher and Maltese violinist Maxine Scicluna give Jessica Arena a preview.

The Lufthansa Technik Malta hangars are impressive even for those completely unversed in aeronautics. The impossibly high ceilings shelter an enormous aircraft, its wingspan sitting comfortably in the enclosure, with ample room for another of its bulk.

Lufthansa Technik Malta CEO Marcus Motschenbacher.

On the moving platforms, activity is frequent and controlled, a precise harmony somehow stitching together the miracle of flight.

Next week, such harmony will take another form and instead of the gargantuan craft, the platforms will be housing the delicate sound of a 65-piece orchestra.

Established in 2002, Lufthansa Technik started with a team of around 80 people doing maintenance on narrow-body aircraft. After an extension in 2008, operations have quadrupled in size and the operation – with a core staff of about 600 – now supports the maintenance of various narrow- and wide-bodied aircraft such as the Airbus A340. Year round they keep six aircraft in parallel, which could also go up to accommodate seven and even eight in active maintenance.

Lufthansa Technik Malta CEO Marcus Motschenbacher speaks with pride in the strength and integrity of the operation.

“We can proudly say that, apart from our partner Air Malta, we were aviation pioneers on the island,” Mr Motschenbacher says.

Primarily a maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facility, Lufthansa Technik has not only achieved growth as a commercial institution but also as a nerve centre that fosters innovation.

With the ongoing maintenance of around 75 international clients over 15 years, Lufhansa Tecknik also enjoys the patronage and endorsement of its mother company, as one of the largest Airbus maintenance providers. This year alone, a €5 million investment extending the company’s service offering to cater for the Airbus A350 will be completed and operational by October.

“This is a company that looks towards the future,” Mr Motschenbacher adds.

This holds true, as Lufthansa Technik Malta has been chosen to host an ‘innovation bay’ – a physical space where new technology is trialled in live application.

“This benefits all group members to become leaner, more digital and efficient.”

The 15th anniversary celebrations are, however, not simply a yardstick measure, but hold a genuine appreciation for service and the impact of the company on local infrastructure.

Music is all about accuracy

On June 8, some 40 employees will be acknowledged for their 15 years of service and presented with a recognition award. The evening will also see the Lufthansa Orchestra playing a special set for the occasion, in the shadow of the colossal Airbus A340-600.

Maxine Scicluna, aircraft engineer, violinist and the sole Maltese member of the orchestra, is delighted to be playing with her colleagues on home soil.

The Lufthansa Orchestra, founded in 2011, is made up of company employees with a passion for music. Ms Scicluna joins the orchestra, based in Frankfurt, for rehearsal weekends and a minimum of two performances a year.

“Music is all about accuracy,” she says.

When you consider her profession as a mechanical engineer, the choice is unsurprising.

The marriage of two passions does not go unnoticed nor unappreciated by its members. Private companies with orchestras are rare or practically unheard of and this makes for a unique creative outlet in a corporate setting.

Violinist and aircraft engineer Maxine Scicluna joined the Lufthansa Orchestra in 2014. Photo: Oliver Roesler

Commitment is an asset, especially for Ms Scicluna, who must prepare well ahead before joining her colleagues for rehearsal.

Regardless, Ms Scicluna appears untroubled and is enthusiastic about the prospect.

“Once we get together, it’s the magic of getting  60 people to really sync and create a work of art.”

The orchestra will be performing on June 8, the day of the ceremony, and on June 9 at Sky Classics, a public concert at the Mediterranean Conference Centre.

The set has been devised to reflect all the elements that bring Lufthansa Technik together, a foreign multinational company with strong local roots. The set will include the music of Beethoven, Dvorak and Brahms, as well as an original composition from local composer John Galea.

The performance will also see singer Ivan Grech taking the stage with the orchestra for select pieces.

For Ms Scicluna, her choice of career was as natural as her affinity for music. Often, music is relegated to the realm of the sublime, with little thought to the more practical elements that make a melody.

But, as an engineer, Ms Scicluna can appreciate the more nuanced things that are essential to the foundation of music.

“Music can be art or expression, but when you dig deeper, it can also be very scientific,” she says.