Signature Aircraft Engineering has launched an emergency general-aviation maintenance service, Signature Fast, from its base in Oxford, UK.
The service, which Signature says is the first of its kind in Europe, will initially provide a rapid response unit of engineers to assist owner-flyers stranded at rural airfields in the southern UK. The company is considering extending the service to other parts of the UK and possibly France and Germany.
James Dillon-Godfray, Signature Aircraft Engineering sales director, says there is a large market for immediate response to problems grounding piston aircraft. The dedicated team of mobile engineers, dispatched with spare parts, is able to repair 95% of general aviation aircraft on site, Dillon-Godfray says. The engineers will initially travel by road, but the company plans to use engineers with private pilot's licences to make the system airborne by the end of the year. Signature Fast will be charged on a membership basis, like roadside assistance schemes.
Signature holds the largest depository of general aviation spares in Europe, including $5 million worth of Beech, Cessna and Piper parts.
Source: Flight International
