The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has certificated China’s Aviage Systems for Boeing 787 avionics work, paving the way for the company to expand into the international market.
Aviage, a joint venture between GE Aviation and Avic, was to have had its formal FAA audit in April 2020, but the coronavirus pandemic scuttled plans, forcing the date to be postponed to January 2021.
The Shanghai-based company discloses that the audit was done virtually — through video and communication technology — while travel restrictions aimed at curbing the pandemic’s spread were still in effect.
Zhu Zhiqiang, executive vice president at Aviage says: “With FAA certification, Aviage can now enter the international MRO market. High quality and safety, satisfying customer needs, and continuous improvement — with these focus areas, I believe our MRO business will go further.”
Aviage is the only company in China to have both FAA and Chinese certification for 787 avionics MRO. In 2019, it signed Xiamen Airlines and Hainan Airlines as customers for avionics maintenance work.
In an interview with FlightGlobal before the 2020 Singapore air show in February, Aviage chief George Chang said that his company was working towards attaining FAA certification.
Chang added that the certification will allow it to extend MRO service beyond China, into the Asia-Pacific region.
Apart from 787 avionics MRO work, Aviage is also the provider of avionics to the Comac C919 narrowbody programme.
