In a three-way signing ceremony at the MRO Asia exhibition VietJet, Vietnam’s fast-growing low-cost carrier signed a five-year contract for the fitting of Pall Aerospace’s Avionics Cooling Filtration System on to its fleet of 92 Airbus A320 family (plus five options) aircraft that it operates and has on order.

The contract was signed by Mr Nguyen Duc Thinh, Vice President Technical for VietJet, together with Mr Steve O’Connor, Vice President, Aerospace Asia at Pall Aerospace, the manufacturer of the filtration system, and Mr Paul Lochab, CCO of Satair Group, the exclusive global distributor for Pall Aerospace’s commercial aircraft aftermarket business.

The deal is the largest ever Pall Aerospace Supplier Furnished Equipment (SFE) contract won by Satair Group in Vietnam and is valued at some US$1.4 million.
Mr. Thinh said: “Today’s deal ensures the favorable technical conditions for Vietjet to further operate and develop its modern fleet. This also helps enforce the airline's quality and safety in operations and is a key part of our strategy for the long-term development of Vietjet.”

The Pall system was introduced to combat the issue of water ingress and dust build-up in the avionics compartment and uses a patented cyclone separator system to remove free water from the air intake. This provides 100 percent water separation efficiency even under the most adverse Airbus testing conditions. The water removal efficiency remains constant and is not affected by the pressure drop across the filter element.

The system gives enhanced dust protection in the avionics bay and maintenance cost savings due to the improved filtration, as well as lower inventory holdings since Pall’s system requires only one filter element compared to two in the original system.

Mr Steve O’Connor of Pall Aerospace added: “We are very pleased that VietJet has selected Pall Aerospace for this equipment option on their new aircraft. This demonstrates the critical value that our partner Satair Group brings in forging strong relationships with our airline customers that allow us to deliver value, both through the performance of products and the service and the support that comes after the delivery of the aircraft.”

Satair Group has enjoyed a long-term relationship with Pall Aerospace, the global leader in filtration and separations solutions, and celebrated its 25-year association between the two companies in 2016.

Mr Lochab of Satair Group stated: “Since signing our first distribution agreement with Pall Aerospace in 1991, Satair Group has now become the world’s largest distributor of filtration products for the commercial aviation industry and we are delighted to have secured this significant contract with VietJet”.

Since commencing operations in 2011, Vietjet, Vietnam’s largest airline in terms of domestic market share, has become the Asia Pacific’s fastest growing low-cost carrier. It has operated profitably since its second year of operation with over 73 domestic and international routes and technical reliability rate of 99.6%, the highest among the A320 family operating airlines in the region.