Singapore Aero Engine Services Private Limited (SAESL) – a S$185 million (US$109 million) joint venture between SIA Engineering Company, Rolls-Royce and Hong Kong Aero Engine Services Limited (HAESL) – specialising in the maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) of Rolls-Royce Trent aero engines, broke ground during the recent Singapore Airshow for a new two-storey, 12,000 sqm expansion in Singapore.
The new development, to be built at a cost of S$60 million (US$43 million) will integrate with the existing building and enhance SAESL’s service offerings enabling it to service 250 engines per year.
Currently, SAESL focuses on Trent aero engines, including the Trent 500, 700 and 800 which power the A340, A330 and Boeing 777 respectively. SAESL is also the lead facility for the Trent 900, the engine chosen by Singapore Airlines for its A380 aircraft.
When completed by 2009, the new development will enable growth in SAESL’s engine type capability, including capability the Trend XWB.
European airframe manufacturer Airbus said a freighter version of the A380 is still in the cards. Speaking to press at the recent Singapore Air Show, Airbus’ chief commercial officer for customers, John Leahy said: “We will see an A380 freighter at some point in time,” without specifying a timeframe.
“Because of the production problems we had to make sacrifices,” Leahy said adding that the freighter variant “will be in our future, but for now we need to ramp up to four 380 aircraft a month by 2010.” He also highlighted the need to begin preparing for a ramp up for the A350 production. Airbus said their order book this year is expected to include at least 30 A380 passenger aircraft and more than 100 A350s, but conceded that orders are likely to shrink by nearly 50 per cent this year as the US recession slows global economic growth.
“We expect fewer orders this year,” confirmed Leahy.
“The size of the order intake this year will be more in the category of 700 aircraft rather than 1,400 (in 2007),” he said adding that this was a conservative estimate. He said however the market is more stable now and the cycles are comparable to “hills and valleys” rather than the “peaks and canyons” in the past.
Airbus said it has a backlog of 3,600 firm orders – a full one third of which are from Asian customers – which means they are sold out for the next five years.
“But I would expect to see fewer and fewer orders as the market cools off a bit,” Leahy said.
The Airbus executive however said the Asia Pacific region remains on track to becoming the top global market in the next 20 years.
Leahy said Asian customers have generated most of the demand to date for the A380, the world’s largest passenger jet, but he expects US carriers to begin using it in the future. He also said Airbus, a unit of European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co., is in talks with long-haul budget carrier AirAsia X, based in Malaysia, about 20 to 25 midrange A350s and it could place its order for A350s “by this summer.”
Airbus chief executive Tom Enders said he expects Asia to become the leading market for large aircraft over the next 20 years. Enders said he expects 40 per cent of the world’s “twin-aisle” planes and 56 per cent of large aircraft like the A380 to be operating in Asia over the next 20 years.