13 Jun 2005
BAE Systems Regional Aircraft has announced significant ongoing business for its customer support operations, a suite of product enhancements and cost benefit successes and it has set course to become an Integrated Support Provider to third party companies.
The new business announced is:
- JetSpares and MACRO ‘spares by the hour’ programmes continue to win new orders and the company announced $30 million of new business recently from customers National Jet Systems (Australia), CityJet of Ireland, Asian Spirit (Philippines), South African Airlink, Malm Aviation (Sweden) and Atlantic Airways of the Faroe Islands.
In the past six months Regional Aircraft has added an additional 31 BAe 146/Avro RJs to JetSpares, bringing the total covered by the programme to 153 aircraft worldwide. The MACRO programme covering Regional Aircraft’s turboprop aircraft now encompasses 83 aircraft with 10 operators.
Significant new JetSpares business is in the final stages of negotiation. - The modifications business of Regional Aircraft has won orders worth in excess of 4 million over the past nine months from 11 operators/organisations. These orders cover a wide variety of product enhancements and mandatory modification upgrades
To help keep its products competitive and to ensure a long service life, Regional Aircraft continues to invest heavily in updating and enhancing its products. It has recently announced:
- the BAe 146 Life Extension Programme that will enable the aircraft to continue operations for at least another 20 years. The Corrosion Protection and Control Programme is invoked when a particular airframe reaches 20 calendar years and introduces an indefinite calendar life. The Supplementary Structural Inspections Document is introduced when a particular airframe reaches 40,000-50,000 cycles (weight and variant dependant). The life is extended to 60,000 cycles immediately and will be further extended to 80, 000 cycles shortly. In addition, the life of all components on the BAe 146 and Avro RJ with the exception of a few parts, has been delimited;
- The introduction of a LCD Flight Panel Modification to the BAe 146 as a significant upgrade to earlier-build analogue aircraft. The first customers for this upgrade are Eurowings and Air Dolomiti, which will have nine BAe 146s converted to the new standard. Certification of the systems (the Collins FPI-920 is the recommended display unit) will be completed by the end of 2005, with installations commencing in 2006;
- The success of its Cost Advantage Programme (RACAP) which has started to deliver measurable cost reductions to customer airlines across both the BAe 146/Avro RJ and ATP fleets. To date some US $11 million of accumulated benefit across the operator community has been identified with just under half of that delivered in cost benefits. On the BAe 146/Avro RJ around a $6 per flight hour cost reduction has been delivered with a further $10 per flight hour identified. On the ATP a $10 per flight hour cost reduction has been identified and delivered. Further significant cost reductions are promised in January 2006 with the approval of a maintenance optimisation programme for both aircraft types.
Regional Aircraft also announced today its first modification/upgrade success on third party aircraft with the award of a Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) for the installation of a Quick Access Recorder (QAR) on the Bombardier Dash 8 Q400 turboprop airliner. Regional Aircraft responded to a request from leading UK carrier FlyBe for an engineering solution covering a QAR installation across its fleet of both BAe 146s and Dash 8 Q400s. As a result, FlyBe has ordered modification kits from Regional Aircraft and the certificated installation (using the Avionica miniQAR and secureLink wireless router) is now available to all operators of Dash 8 Q400s.
Building on this Dash 8 Q400 success, Regional Aircraft is now looking to work closely with current customers to engineer modifications and upgrade solutions through STCs to other regional and mainline airliners types that are operated alongside BAE Systems aircraft.
Rob Hearn, Customer Services Director of Regional Aircraft said today: “The success of the Dash 8 Q400 modification is an illustration of where Regional Aircraft seeks to gain new business and change its long-term focus. We are keen to move into adjacent markets through leveraging our skills and relationships to cover other aircraft types, and to better serve our existing customers.
“We are almost certainly unique in the market of being able to provide the lease and management of aircraft with Integrated Support Solutions and we intend to build on that. Our JetSpares and MACRO programmes are highly regarded in the market and we are now looking at the possibility of extending these programmes to our customers’ other aircraft types.
“At the same time, our announcements today of the continuing sustained investment in our own core products to keep them competitive and attractive in the longer term should leave no one in any doubt that we intend to remain a force in the regional aircraft business for many years to come.”
About BAE SYSTEMS
BAE Systems is an international company engaged in the development, delivery and support of advanced defence and aerospace systems in the air, on land, at sea and in space. The company designs, manufactures and supports military aircraft, surface ships, submarines, fighting vehicles, radar, avionics, communications, electronics and guided weapon systems. It is a pioneer in technology with a heritage stretching back hundreds of years. It is at the forefront of innovation, working to develop the next generation of intelligent defence systems.
BAE Systems has major operations across five continents and customers in some 130 countries. The company has more than 90,000 people and generates annual sales of over 13 billion through its wholly-owned and joint venture operations.
For further information, please contact:
David Dorman, BAE Systems
Tel: +44 (0) 1582 488336 Fax: +44 (0) 1582 488447
ddaviddorman@aol.com
www.regional-services.com
