SAE has failed to secure the certification of the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) for MRO work for Airbus aircraft. SAE’s management could not be reached for comments and a request for an interview with the company’s chief executive officer Syed Budriz Putra drew a blank.
The company which started operations in October 2007 is located at the KualaLumpur International Airport (KLIA).
It is a joint venture between Syed, a Malaysian businessman and low cost airline AirAsia. Syed holds 81 per cent stake while AirAsia has the remaining 19 per cent.
Even before it started operations SAE had the AirAsia group of airlines’ contracts for A320 and B737-300 aircraft, and AirAsia X’s A330-300 in the bag. With SAE’s failure to secure the EASA certification the contracts are now up for grabs with several MRO companies said to be bidding for the business. Singapore-based ST Aerospace which had previously carried out the maintenance for AirAsia’s B737-300s has not submitted its bid and declined to comment.
SAE is currently focusing on C checks for B737-300 aircraft operated by AirAsia in the states of Sabah and Sarawak, Thai Air Asia and Indonesia Air Asia, and line maintenance.
The company had invested about US$30 million for the construction of two hangars with the capacity to accommodate eight narrow body aircraft and another dedicated bay for stripping and painting. Another US$6.5 million was invested in tooling and equipment.
SAE is the third MRO company in Malaysia. The other two are Airod which focuses mainly on military aircraft maintenance and MAS Aerospace Engineering.
The plan to set up SAE was conceived by Syed during the Langkawi International Maritime Air Show in 2005 when AirAsia took delivery of its first A320 aircraft.
It was a boost for the Malaysian aviation industry to keep the MRO business in the country, but those planslook less firm now.