KUCHING: An anticipated rise in demand for turboprop regional ATR aircraft lends optimism for propeller maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) player Aircraft Propeller Service (APS), which opened its state-of-the-art MRO facility in Malaysia on Tuesday.

According to APS chief executive officer Daniel Colbert, the group anticipates increased demand for MRO services due to increased flying but also due to more deliveries of ATR aircraft to the Asia Pacific region.

“If you look at the number of ATR aircraft that the airlines in Asia Pacific have on order, and also look at the aircraft that are due to be delivered to Southeast Asia within the next five years and within the next 10 years, it is very strong,” he told The Borneo Post in an exclusive interview.

“We met with ATR last week at the Paris Airshow and learnt that they are ramping up production this year and in the coming years as well. ATR — in its 20 year forecast for the period 2025-2044 — forecasts that it will deliver to the Asia Pacific region including India; 1,045 aircraft, accounting for half of its aircraft deliveries globally.

“We are establishing the MRO facility in Malaysia to cater to this tremendous growth we see in the Asia Pacific region.”

This new, world-class MRO center reinforces APS’ long-term commitment to the Asia Pacific region, the world’s largest market for turboprop aircraft.

The facility in Selangor is APS’ first in Asia and adds to its existing global footprint in the United States and Brazil. APS is the only MRO company in Asia and the Americas licensed to perform original equipment manufacturer (OEM)-proprietary 568F propeller repairs under an agreement with Collins Aerospace, the propeller manufacturer.

The US FAA and Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia have both certified the new facility with EASA and other country approvals to follow soon.

Colbert explained that the new MRO facility will offer full capability to maintain the propeller system in the country, adding that proprietary repairs need not go back to APS in the Americas or to the original equipment manufacturer in Europe.

“Instead, all the work can be done here in Malaysia at our world-class, internationally certified MRO facility. Our focus is on establishing this ‘centre of excellence’ we have opened here in Kuala Lumpur and further building up the full suite of capabilities.

“As we do that over the next three to five years, we will see how demand grows and possibly look at additional locations in the region. At the moment, our focus is on the facility we have just opened in Malaysia.”

The Chief Minister of Selangor, Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari, was the guest-of-honor who officially opened the new MRO facility along with Colbert and APS Asia Pacific managing director, Fergus Lopez.

Twenty of APS Malaysia’s 30 employees have already completed APS’ rigorous training in the US and Brazil, gaining certifications in complex inspections and OEM-authorised repair techniques. In addition, each of these trainees has completed 31 mandatory technical courses to ensure compliance with global performance standards.

Asia-Pacific accounts for 37 per cent of the global ATR fleet and is projected to require nearly 1,000 additional 50-70 seat commercial turboprop aircraft over the next two decades.

APS ATR facility mro turboprop