Lufthansa Technik Philippines plans to expand its maintenance, repair and overhaul operations in the Philippines with a new facility at Clark Freeport, following the successful launch of its MRO site at Hangar 1A in Pasay City.
LTP president and chief executive Ear Lutter said over the weekend the expansion outside Metro Manila would be the next big step for the company, as the Ninoy Aquino International Airport reached its geographical limit.
“We will seek discussions with possible partners and explore possibilities in the Philippines and beyond with the end in mind to add affordable high-quality MRO to our region and deliver safety and reliability to our customers,” Lutter said at the opening of Hangar 1 on Aug. 19
Lutter said the company’s struggle to break through the pandemic delayed construction activities at the Hangar 1A site for one and a half years.
“This hangar is also testament of difficult trade-offs. The process to shape the corporate tax reform, known as the CREATE [Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises] law, has put our company into the limelight. And although times are uncertain, I am optimistic. We will overcome the challenges,” he said
LTP vice president for sales and marketing Rainier Janke said the expansion at Hangar1A was borne out of the need to improve capacity at the Manila International Airport to support its biggest local client—Philippine Airlines.
LTP said the year before the start of the pandemic was the strongest in the company’s history, with a very solid market position for the maintenance and overhaul of the superjumbo Airbus A380. The year 2019 yielded 1.5 million man-hours for the German company.
The hangar is capable of accommodating Airbus A380, other Airbus units and wide-body aircrafts of British Airways, Korean Airlines, Asiana, Qantas and Lufthansa.
Janke said LTP was responding to a renewed demand for aircraft maintenance as travel picked up and planes around the world were no longer grounded.
The new facility is expected to add 20 percent to LTP’s capacity and employ at least 275 more personnel, contributing to government’s efforts to arrest unemployment wrought by the extended health crisis.
Hangar 1A will provide base maintenance for various commercial aircraft of short to long-range capacities, including Airbus jets A320, A330, A380 and the Boeing 777.
Strategically located at Manila’s main aerodrome, LTP has capacity to service aircraft coming to and from major international hubs such as Tokyo, Singapore and Hong Kong.
A joint venture between Lufthansa Technik AG and MacroAsia Corp., LTP is a globally-certified provider of aircraft MRO services qualified by the European Union’s Aviation Safety Agency, the United States FAA and other airworthiness authorities from around the world.
It employs more than 2,600 Filipinos across its facilities in Manila, Clark in Pampanga, Cebu, Davao, Kalibo in Aklan and Puerto Princesa City in Palawan.
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