A process for repairing combined heavy erosion and thermal fatigue cracks and/or other defects, such as large cracks, in a high temperature superalloy component, such as a vane in a turbine section of a gas turbine engine, that does not require mechanical grinding to prepare the defect site. The process includes depositing a loose finely granulated superalloy powder or a low viscosity superalloy slurry in the crack up to a suitable level and then depositing a superalloy putty layer on the superalloy powder or slurry at the top of the crack A braze putty layer is then deposited over the superalloy putty layer and the component is sintered in a vacuum furnace to harden the superalloy putty and powder or slurry to repair the defect.