Singapore, 7 February 2020 - To cater to Vietnam Airlines (VNA) and the Asia Pacific region’s rising needs for Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) services, ST Engineering is exploring the setting up of an airframe MRO joint venture (JV) in Vietnam with Vietnam Airlines and other potential airline partners. The JV will operate out of Vietnam Airlines’ facilities located at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi and Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City to provide base maintenance services.
The joint venture will leverage the rich MRO expertise of ST Engineering, and the extensive networks of its airline partners to tap the growing MRO market in the region. According to industry forecasts, the commercial aircraft in-service fleet and the MRO demand in Asia-Pacific are estimated to increase at a compound annual growth rate of 4.5% and 5.0% respectively over the next decade.
Duong Tri Thanh, President & CEO of Vietnam Airlines said, “The establishment of a joint venture will bring more aircraft and added value to Vietnam. Likewise, it will help to improve the technical level of the domestic aircraft maintenance industry as well as the competitiveness of the national airline. Together with ST Engineering and other potential airline partners around the world, we believe that this joint venture will stimulate and strengthen the Vietnamese job market and aviation industry."
“This is an exciting development for us given that Asia Pacific is a focus market for ST Engineering. Following the setting up of our first component MRO facility in Vietnam in September 2019, this new joint venture will help to expand our offerings to include component and airframe MRO for our customers,” said Mr Lim Serh Ghee, President of ST Engineering’s Aerospace sector. “Collaboration with trusted customers like Vietnam Airlines will be a strong factor contributing to our success as we will continue to increase our network of facilities to capture opportunities in the region.”
ST Engineering is the world’s largest commercial airframe MRO provider by maintenance manhours, backed by a track record of over 15,000 commercial aircraft maintained and modified since 1990. With a global network of facilities in the North America, Asia Pacific and Europe capable of accommodating 44 widebody, 26 narrowbody and 24 general aviation aircraft simultaneously, ST Engineering provides support to a broad customer base that includes leading airlines, airfreight and military operators.
ST Engineering is showcasing its MRO solutions and other aerospace capabilities at the Aviation cluster of the ST Engineering Pavilion (G01) at the Singapore Airshow 2020 from 11 – 16 February.