Slash import duty on plane spares: Air Works

Major Indian aircraft maintenance firm Air Works today sought slashing of import duty on airplane spares and service tax on MROs in the upcoming budget.
Expanding its portfolio, the company had announced the acquisition of French aircraft repainting company Aero Technique Espace (ATE) last month.
This is Air Works' second such acquisition since it bought off UK-based Air Livery almost two years ago, becoming "one of Europe's largest providers of aircraft paint services", its Managing Director Vivek N Gour told PTI here.
Air Works, which had acquired business aviation services company Empire Aviation last year, is also a one-stop shop providing a wide range of manpower and services -- from pilots, cabin crew and maintenance to getting flight permissions, landing rights and refuelling aircraft finance and insurance to customers in India and the Gulf.

"If an aircraft owner wants to fly out urgently, he or she has to give us only a three-hour notice to put everything in place," Gour said.
Regarding the latest acquisition of ATE, he said all major European carriers, like Virgin Atlantic, Lufthansa, Air France and EasyJet, and those from North Africa were Air Works' clients now. "We have become a known name there."
Observing that ATE also paints 'green aircraft' (new ones) for manufacturers like Airbus and ATR at their facilities in southern France, he said, "We hope to further develop these relationships and increase our service footprint with both original equipment manufacturers."

Asked what revenue did his company earn from European operations, he said almost 55 per cent of the revenue, the total expected to be over Rs 400 crore this year, came from abroad "because the MRO (Maintenance, Repairs and Overhaul) industry here is in shackles".