BEIJING, Aug. 30 - United Airlines (OTC Bulletin Board: UALAQ) and Aircraft Maintenance and Engineering Corporation (Ameco Beijing) signed a five-year agreement to conduct airframe heavy maintenance for United Airlines' Boeing 777 fleet.
Over the next five years, United Airlines' Boeing 777 fleet will go to Ameco Beijing for heavy maintenance visits (HMV). More than 50 HMV's are planned for the first three years, and as many as 80 will be completed over the contractual period. Based on this plan, Ameco Beijing will begin heavy maintenance work on the first five aircraft nose to tail starting this October.
Glenn Tilton, Chairman, President and CEO of United Airlines, Greg Hall, SVP Maintenance and Engineering UA, He Li, CEO & General Manager of Ameco Beijing and Dr. Hans Schmitz, General Manager of Ameco Beijing attended the signing ceremony held at The Great Wall Sheraton Hotel today and signed the contract. Li Jiaxiang, General Manager of China National Aviation Holding Company (CNAH), Ma Kuiliang, Vice President of Air China, August Henningsen, CEO of Lufthansa Technik also participated in the event.
Greg Hall, Senior Vice President of United Services said, "Ameco Beijing shares United's unwavering commitment to quality and safety. Ameco Beijing has state-of-the-art technology and world-class facilities that will enable United to seamlessly complete its heavy maintenance visits."
Will Crocker, United Airlines Director of Technical Strategic Sourcing for Airframe and Aircraft Components added, "The competitive cost structure, high- quality service and guaranteed turn-around times provided by Ameco Beijing will help us reach our cost targets."
"We are excited as this is one of Ameco Beijing's biggest contracts with a North American customer in our history. Through our cooperation with United Airlines, we are obtaining access to one of the largest and most reputable airlines in the world. This proves that Ameco Beijing has the means to join ranks with leaders in the MRO industry," said He Li, CEO & General Manager of Ameco Beijing, at the signing ceremony.
Ameco Beijing General Manager Dr. Hans Schmitz added, "Our collaboration with United Airlines makes us one of the leading aircraft overhaul providers in the world. Moreover, this indicates that Ameco Beijing is taking a successful step into the North American market."
In order to better service and communicate with customers, Ameco Beijing will create an IT interface with United Airlines for e-documents, human resources data, invoicing processes and other real-time data services.
United Airlines is one of the largest airlines in the world. It currently operates 455 aircraft, of which 52 are Boeing 777.
About United
United Airlines (OTC Bulletin Board: UALAQ) is the world's second largest airline and operates more than 3,400 flights a day on United, United Express and Ted to more than 200 U.S. domestic and international destinations from its hubs in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Denver, Chicago and Washington, D.C. With key global air rights in the Asia-Pacific region, Europe and Latin America, United is one of the largest international carriers based in the United States. United is also a founding member of Star Alliance, which provides connections for our customers to nearly 800 destinations in 139 countries worldwide. United's 58,500 employees reside in every U.S. state and in many countries around the world. News releases and other information about United can be found at the company's Web site at http://united.com .
About Ameco Beijing
Ameco Beijing, located at Beijing Capital International Airport, is a joint venture established in 1989 between Air China (60%) and Lufthansa German Airlines (40%). It provides maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services for airframe, engines and components of commercial aircraft. It also offers services in training, engineering and logistics, as well as tooling calibration for China's entire aviation industry.
As a member of the LHT global MRO network, and with over 16 years of service experience, Ameco Beijing sees great growth opportunities in the North American market through the provision of value-added services and comprehensive technical solutions.
Ameco Beijing currently has an annual capacity for some 90 heavy maintenance visits. The company boasts an on-time delivery rate of 98% on all heavy maintenance production lines.
Ameco Beijing is an MRO provider licensed by CAAC in China, FAA in the U.S., the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) as well as the regulatory authorities of 12 other countries.
Today, Ameco Beijing employs more than 4,000 specialists at its facility. In addition to Air China, it also services more than 30 Chinese and 40 international airlines. Since the company's establishment in 1989, the two founding partners have invested nearly USD200 million in this Sino-German joint venture -- the first of its kind in the aviation industry -- making it China's largest MRO operation.
The total revenue of Ameco Beijing in 2004 reaches RMB1.6 billion.
More information about Ameco Beijing can be found at http://www.ameco.com.cn .
Ameco Beijing product range:
Airframe:
Line, light and heavy maintenance for Boeing 737,747, 767 and 777; strut modification, section 41 modification and Boeing 747 cockpit upgrading; Boeing 737 station 178 bulkhead modification; Boeing 767 strut modification; cabin refurbishment, CPCP and other services; line maintenance for most types of Boeing and Airbus aircraft.
Engine:
Overhaul, repair and testing on JT9D-7R4G2, JT9D-7R4E, PW4000 (94-inch), RB211-535E4, and APU GTCP85-129 as well as module change, repair and testing on CFM56-3 engines. By the end of 2004, Ameco Beijing had repaired and overhauled 2242 engines since it began operations in 1989.
Component:
Overhaul of various Boeing 737, 747, 767, 777 and A320, 340 components, non-destructive testing, calibration and other capabilities.
Landing Gear:
Maintenance and overhaul of Boeing 737, 747 and 767 landing gears and landing gear exchange services.
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