BAE Systems won a number of new contracts across its Regional Aircraft support and engineering businesses and announced new initiatives for improved support offerings.
“Our business continues to deliver on its financial targets and is cash generative”, said managing director Alan Fraser. “These new contracts and further initiatives to help our operators underline our strong value proposition. Our market-responsive support strategies are now increasingly appealing to both well-established and new operators of our aircraft on a worldwide basis. We have re-shaped our engineering business and geared it for growth.”
Two new multi-million pound rate-per-flying-hour spares support contracts were announced: Swiss International Airlines signed a five-year JetSpares contract covering its fleet of 20 Avro RJ100 regional jetliners, while European cargo airline West Atlantic concluded a three-year MACRO deal for all 44 ATP turboprops in its fleet.
Both programmes are designed to allow airlines to concentrate on their flight operations while BAE Systems Regional Aircraft takes care of spares inventory, logistics and repairs.
BAE Systems’ engineering business also benefitted from a new growth strategy and, building upon its success with Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation of Japan, it secured further design engineering work from four additional new Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) customers.
Over the past two years this new strategy has meant that the proportion of third-party engineering revenues from outside BAE Systems has grown from 35% in 2010 to an estimated 92% this year.
The company also won spares support business from three new BAe 146/Avro RJ operators – Eznis Airways of Mongolia, North Cariboo Air of Canada and Dragon Air Management of South Africa – for its new ‘Parts Plus’ spares delivery service.
Additionally, it reached an agreement with global logistics company Kuehne & Nagel to place a quantity of BAe 146/Avro RJ consumable and rotable spares into K&N’s existing Miami warehouse facility to better serve existing and new operators of these aircraft in the Latin American market.
This warehouse will also be used to service the North American market where a number of new operators of the BAe 146/Avro RJ are emerging.
An extra consignment stock of spares for the Avro RJ will also be placed close to London City Airport this summer for the duration of the Olympic Games.
An agreement with Propulsion International of California for the joint marketing and sales of a Honeywell TPE331 engine rate-per-flying hour support programme is expected to benefit operators of the Jetstream turboprop.
BAE Systems also announced it will extend its support solutions for the BAe 146/Avro RJ with Meggitt Aircraft Braking Systems of Coventry (offering wheels and brakes maintenance support for new operators of the aircraft) as well as a new contract from Mitsubishi to manufacture, test and supply flight test equipment for the Mitsubishi Regional Jet programme.
