Dubai World Central Aviation City has signed a deal with Palm Aviation to set up the project’s first fixed-base operation (FBO) ground handling facility.

The Dh40 million ($10.9 million) 80,000 sq ft facility to cater to the booming flight support services industry will be built within Dubai World Central – the 140 sq km urban aviation project under construction at Jebel Ali, UAE.

Under the agreement, Palm Aviation, Middle East’s leading provider of on-demand aviation support, will extend its existing global flight support operations centre to DWC Aviation City from Dubai Airport Free Zone office. The move is part of its ambitious expansion strategy, set to see the company grow by 35 per cent annually over the next five years across the region.

“DWC Aviation City will be home to the world’s largest MRO providers, largely due to the strategic aviation services offerings to third parties setting up their regional operations within our project,” said Abdulla Al Qurashi, CEO, DWC Aviation City.

"The aviation sector is expected to grow at more than 30 per cent annually for the coming five years and the impressive growth of over 9 per cent for the Middle East MRO market is expected to continue over the same period, when DWC Aviation City will be the natural choice for these burgeoning companies to establish their base due to the full range of aviation services infrastructure available by then.

“Palm Aviation’s FBO facility at DWC Aviation City is strategic due to its proximity to the world’s largest airports - DWC-Al Maktoum International Airport, which will enable speedy real-time solutions to ground handling flight support needs.”

The DWC Aviation City facility will be one of Palm Aviation’s best FBO project and enhance its distribution network for business aviation services in the UAE and the region.

Khalid Al Mutawa, chairman, Palm Aviation, said: “As an internationally certified supplier, the new FBO facility at DWC Aviation City will allow us to further grow our operations and market share.”

DWC Aviation City is a unique concept to establish a complete aviation cluster in one area to cater to the region’s aviation growth, strategically located to provide clients access to emerging markets as well as servicing the fast growing Middle East market.

Al Maktoum International Airport goes live with initial cargo operations by end-2008 and has been designed to handle 120-150 million passengers and 12 million tonnes of cargo annually. – TradeArabia News Service