European charter company Excellent Air is to open the first business jet maintenance repair and overhaul (MRO) facility at Amsterdam Schiphol airport.
The German-Dutch company's chief executive Rainald Schulte says the company, formerly Grenzland Air Services, will service its own Cessna Citation and Raytheon Hawker fleet at its 1,700m² (18,300ft²) Amsterdam Schiphol facility and offer third-party maintenance from April. The company expects to receive European JAR 145 certification in January. Schulte expects certification for Williams FJ44 and Honeywell TFE731 engine line maintenance to follow next year.
The creation of a maintenance facility completes Excellent Air's relocation to Amsterdam following the veto by authorities in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia of the company's runway expansion plans at its former base in Stadtlohn. The move was completed in June after Excellent Air acquired the executive flight division of Dutch cargo airline Martinair.
The MRO facility is part of an aggressive expansion policy for the company, which has doubled the size of its fleet over the past three years. Shulte says that the company is "willing to expand further in Europe" in the near future and is looking at opportunities in France, Italy, Spain Switzerland and the UK.
Meanwhile, Excellent Air has imposed strict security measures for its charter operations following the USA terrorist attacks. The security measures involve all employees being screened and passengers' identities being checked prior to boarding. Excellent Air claims to be the first charter operator in Europe to impose such strict criteria.
Source: Flight International
