PROFITS AT Lufthansa’s Shannon-based aircraft maintenance subsidiary soared last year by 110 per cent to $24 million.

Accounts for Lufthansa Technik Airmotive Ireland Holdings Ltd show that turnover rose to $335 million from $242 million in 2006.

The company noted “significant contracts” in both its aircraft and engine-related businesses.

“The airline industry experienced a buoyant market in 2007, which saw the profits in most of the group’s business segments increase,” the accounts state. “Industrial relations problems, which marred the results of Shannon Aerospace Ltd in 2006 were resolved in the second quarter of 2007 and the company operated profitably for the remainder of the year.”

Remarkably, staff pay rose by 13 per cent to $76.4 million, even though its headcount declined slightly to 1,245.

The accounts were signed off in March, just before the chill wind from the credit crunch really began to buffet the industry.