Fresh from its acquisition of the Defence Aviation and Repair Agency (DARA) rotary wing and components businesses in the UK earlier this year, Vector Aerospace comes to Farnborough with a positive story to tell.
Vector Aerospace took over the DARA businesses at Almondbank and Fleetlands in April, strengthening its UK presence and signalling its goal to develop what chief executive Declan O’Shea describes as a “world-leading aviation support services company”.
Some 60% of Vector’s 2,500 employees are UK-based, split between the former DARA sites and its Croydon-based Vector Aerospace Engine Services UK business, which was formerly Sigma Aerospace. “We are in the processing of rebranding all our business under the Vector Aerospace banner,” says O’Shea. “We want to be synonymous with the highest standards of customer service.”
Vector’s reach extends beyond the UK to include bases in the United States and Canada and is one of the world’s largest independent suppliers of maintenance repair and overhaul (MRO). The recent acquisitions have given the company a leading role in support the UK’s armed forces on the front line.
With UK troops operating in Iraq and Afghanistan Vector is seeing very strong demand for MRO services and its Helicopter Services team at Fleetlands is helping to keep the UK’s Boeing CH-47 Chinook, AgustaWestland Lynx and Sea King fleet serviceable.
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“The requirement for helicopters and the conditions in which these aircraft are flying means a significant challenge for our team but we have risen to that challenge and we’re performing well,” explains O’Shea. “For example, we are working very closely with manufacturers so that if aircraft come in requiring both maintenance and damage repair we are completing both within the same period of down-time to enable those aircraft to be available again as soon as possible.”
The company plans to build on the capabilities of its newly acquired UK facilities to create a European centre of excellence for helicopter support, both in the civil and military markets. “Our split between military and civil is fairly even,” says O’Shea. “That isn’t central to the strategy – for us it’s having good businesses that deliver.”
Vector’s Croydon, UK operation provides engine repair and overhaul for the RAF C130K Hercules transport and VC10 tanker fleets as well as military transport fleets for overseas customers.
Outside the UK, the company is also rebranding what was Acrohelipro into Vector Aerospace Helicopter Services North America, headquartered in Richmond, British Columbia. It is the largest rotary wing MRO supplier in North America and provides worldwide support for Bell, Eurocopter and Sikorsky helicopters with a government base that includes commercial operators, government and security agencies.
Vector’s other North American division, Atlantic Turbines, will become Vector Aerospace Engine Services North America in September. It is a fully authorised Pratt & Whitney Canada distributor and designated overhaul facility, providing engine support to JT15D, PT6A and PW100 engines.
Source: Flight International
