MANILA, Philippines — Aircraft maintenance repair and overhaul provider Lufthansa Technik Philippines (LTP) expects a 10 percent increase in revenue with the expanded capacity of its facility at the Villamor Airbase in Pasay City.
LTP, a joint venture of Hamburg-based Lufthansa Technik AG and Lucio Tan’s aviation support service provider MacroAsia Corp., yesterday held a groundbreaking ceremony of its latest hangar costing $40 million.
LTP president and CEO Elmar Lutter said construction activities for the new hangar called Hangar 1A commenced last September, and is seen to start operations by the last quarter of next year.
Hangar 1A, will be an exact replica of the existing Hangar 1, which currently services aircraft of various airlines, including flag carrier Philippine Airlines and international airlines like British Airways, Korean Air, Asiana Airlines and Saudi Arabian Airlines.
With a total area of 9,000 square meters, the addition of Hangar 1A in LTP’s facility will enable the company to service more aircraft, including Airbus A380 aircraft, the world’s largest passenger airliner.
This will result in a 10 percent additional revenue for the company, according to Lutter.
“Construction of Hangar 1A brings the total number of hangar base in our Manila facility to 10. The new hangar will allow us to enhance our capacity for base maintenance by 20 percent. Base maintenance entails essentially the heavy checks which we do for the aircraft of our clients,” he said.
Lutter said LTP’s expansion also serves as an answer to the growing demand for maintenance, repair, and overhaul services in Asia-Pacific and further strengthens the Philippines as an ideal aviation services hub in the region.
“It’s about time we showcase the Philippines as an aviation stronghold in Asia-Pacific. The company strongly believes in the ability of the Philippines to be a hub for aviation services in the region, and proof of this is our expansion and continued commitment to the country,” he said.
Completion of Hangar 1A by next year is expected to create an additional 275 jobs.
LTP is currently employing 3,300 Filipinos across key cities nationwide, including Clark, Cebu, Davao, Kalibo and Puerto Princesa.
LTP’s Manila site provides base and line maintenance to various commercial aircraft including Airbus A320, A330, A350, and A380, as well as Boeing B777.
“After this expansion here, we basically used up all available land for hangar so we have to go elsewhere in the Philippines. LTP follows where the airline goes,” MacroAsia president Joseph Chua said.