IAe looks to replace BO105 assembly line and aims to fill gap left by Bell 412, which it no longer licence builds
Poland's PZL Swidnik is discussing outsourcing manufacturing work for the W-3 Sokol helicopter to Indonesian Aerospace (IAe).
IAe says it seeks to supply Swidnik with portions of the Sokol airframe and some subassemblies. The Sokol work would replace IAe's Eurocopter BO105 assembly line, which is being shut down.
IAe has already stopped licence-building Bell 412s, but seeks to fill this void by forging a new supplier deal with Bell on the 412 or with China's Harbin Aircraft on the Z-9/H410/H425. Eurocopter has agreed to extend a licence agreement on the AS332 Super Puma, but it has rejected an IAe proposal to supply components for the EC120.
IAe and Swidnik plan to complete a feasibility study on their proposed industrial partnership by the end of May. The study began after a memorandum of understanding was signed at the end of February during an Indonesian-Polish economic summit.
IAe managing director of commerce and business development Iwan Soemekto says a licensing agreement has been ruled out for the Sokol because IAe does not want sales responsibility for the helicopter. He says PZL is requiring IAe guarantee a local market in exchange for any supplier deal. To satisfy this requirement, IAe is seeking to sell lighter SW-4s to the Indonesian police.
Iwan says IAe is still hoping to revive its relationship with Bell, although the US manufacturer has indicated it is not interested in a new partnership. As an alternative, IAe is discussing an industrial relationship with Harbin. Sales of the Z-9A to the Indonesian army are being discussed to support the proposed partnership, which may also include building components for the H410 and H425 civil variants.
The extension of the Super Puma licence agreement, which was to expire next month, ensures a final nine aircraft on back order from the Indonesian air force will be built. After that the line will probably close due to a lack of demand from other civil or military operators in Indonesia.
IAe is also a Eurocopter service centre, but has lost maintenance business, because of the increased use of unauthorised service centres in Indonesia.
Eurocopter was recently forced to forge a maintenance deal with local company Avindo, following an abrupt move by service centre Adhipraysa Pratama to sever its ties with the EADS subsidiary.
BRENDAN SOBIE / SINGAPORE
Source: Flight International
