Abu Dhabi-based Mubadala Development Company and Goodrich Corporation have signed a deal to establish a joint venture company in the UAE for maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) work on landing gears.

Mubadala Aerospace, a business unit of the Abu Dhabi group, said the venture will be Middle East’s first dedicated landing gear facility and is be operational by 2012.

The facility will be based in the city of Al Ain in the emirate, alongside other Mubadala Aerospace companies including Strata, the high-tech composite manufacturing facility and AMMROC, the military MRO center formed through a JV between Abu Dhabi Aircraft Technologies and Sikorsky.

Homaid Al Shemmari, executive director of Mubadala Aerospace and Mike Brand, president of Goodrich Landing Gear signed the Heads of Agreement (HOA) at the Farnborough Airshow in the presence of  Troy Lambeth, chief executive of Mubadala’s recently established spare engine and rotable leasing subsidiary, Sanad Aero Solutions.

Under the terms of the HOA, the joint venture company will provide MRO services and rotable support for landing gear on commercial aircraft with its primary focus on customers in the Middle East region.

Sanad is also expected to play a key role in supporting the joint venture company with rotable landing gear assets.

The company will initially support both Boeing and Airbus commercial aircraft, including the A380 and B777 models, with plans to extend to other commercial and military markets.

Brand said, "This represents a significant commitment to our customers in the fast-growing Middle East region. By combining the original equipment and MRO expertise of Goodrich with Mubadala’s growing aerospace network and rotable asset leasing, we can truly provide an improved value to customers in the region."

Commenting on the pact, Al Shemmari said, “This agreement emphasizes the continued development of Mubadala Aerospace’s global MRO network. In Goodrich we have a relationship with one of the world’s top aerospace companies that brings their expertise to a new regional hub in the Middle East."

"The region already has the world’s largest concentration of wide body aircraft and the new facility will deliver much needed landing gear capability for our existing and future customers," he added.-TradeArabia News Service