|
18th July, 2008
FARNBOROUGH, United Kingdom: MAS Aerospace Engineering, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Malaysia Airlines, will team up with Italy’s aeronautical firm, Alenia Aeronavali to form a comprehensive aircraft maintenance and repair overhaul (MRO) joint venture company.
While they would market these services to other airlines at highly competitive costs in both the local and regional MRO markets, their partnership would provide a boost to the government’s aggressive efforts to promote Subang as an aviation hub.
“We can leverage on our collective expertise to continue to offer a high level of safe and secure flight operations,” MAS Aerospace Engineering (MAE)’s Managing Director, Mohd Roslan Ismail, said.
He said MAE is to be one of the major MRO providers in Asia.
Mohd Roslan said the facility in Subang, which mainly services the Fokker-50 aircraft, would be able to service the Avions de Transport Regional (ATR) aircraft by the year end with minimal investment comprising tooling and training as the hangar was already there.
As for efforts to enhance Subang as a major MRO hub in the Asia Pacific region, he said the potential was there given that 160 ATR aircraft had already been delivered and a further 272 ordered.
Subang was already among the top three MRO centres regionally.
He said potential customers from India, Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines would find it cheaper to service their ATR in Subang rather than sending the aircraft back to Toulouse in France.
“We are also finalising the equity shareholding but MAE will be the major shareholder in the joint venture,” he said.
|
