Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates - Etihad Airways Engineering, the largest commercial aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services provider in the Middle East, has signed a collaboration agreement with Argentina’s main aircraft manufacturer, Fabrica Argentina de Aviones (FAdeA), to serve MRO customers in South America.
The agreement enables both companies to leverage their strengths and become significant players in the narrow body aircraft maintenance market in South America. As part of the collaboration, Etihad Airways Engineering will support FAdeA in developing the processes and capabilities to maintain and modify aircraft and aircraft components.
Abdul Khaliq Saeed, Chief Executive Officer, Etihad Airways Engineering, said: “Etihad Airways Engineering has built a strong customer base in Latin America, having carried out heavy maintenance work on a range of aircraft types from Airbus A330 to Boeing 767, 777 and the 787 Dreamliner for customers in Brazil, Chile, Argentina and Colombia.
“We’re pleased to collaborate with FAdeA and share our expertise and extensive capabilities to serve customers in the region”.
Antonio Beltramone, President FAdeA, said: “This is a strategic agreement for FAdeA that allows us to maximise the potential of our highly skilled labour force and facilities to provide sustainability for our company, and conquer new commercial aviation markets.”
The partnership will capitalise on the existing facilities and manpower of FAdeA, coupled with Etihad Airways Engineering’s MRO expertise as well as its strong customer footprint in Latin America. Etihad Airways Engineering will be FAdeA’s preferred partner for Part 21J Engineering and Part 21G Production.
Following the signing of the multi-year agreement, seven Airbus A320 aircraft belonging to LAN Argentina were reconfigured at FAdeA facilities and more projects are planned in the coming months.
Etihad Airways Engineering’s state-of-the-art facility is located in Abu Dhabi, adjacent to Abu Dhabi International Airport. Aircraft hangars at the facility cover approximately 66,000 sq metres, including 10,000 sq metres of aircraft painting facilities and a custom-designed hangar that can accommodate up to three Airbus A380 aircraft simultaneously. The company has successfully completed maintenance projects over the years for airlines across the world.
