KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia Airlines unit, MAS Aerospace Engineering Sdn Bhd (MAE), has signed a one-year agreement with Air Mauritius for the maintenance of eight aircraft – six Airbus 340-200s and two Airbus 330-200s.
MAE said in a statement yesterday that the agreement covered heavy maintenance checks involving overhaul works and the repainting of the Air Mauritius aircraft with new livery.
It said the services would be conducted at its one-stop facility in Subang, which has the capacity to service over 200 aircraft annually.
MAS senior general manager, engineering and maintenance, Mohd Roslan Ismail, said the partnership marked a breakthrough into the African aviation market, especially southern Africa.
“Many of the small and medium-sized airlines operate Airbus aircraft and we have built our capabilities to include the A340s.
“It is also more cost-effective for them to send their aircraft here for maintenance due to our proximity to southern Africa and lower manpower cost compared with Europe,” Roslan said.
He said MAE currently employed over 800 aircraft engineers and 3,000 technicians.
“As part of our expansion plans over the next few years, we plan to have an additional 1,000 engineers and 2,500 technicians,” he said.
Air Mauritius executive vice-president of technical services, Jacques Gentil, said the airline was confident of MAE’s expertise, experience and high-quality services.
“We believe in their capabilities and look forward to working with them for our aircraft maintenance requirements,”