CAV Annual Report 2021

in the continents needs by investing in facilities and skills development: • Nigeria’s Aero Contractors is engaged with the Nigerian government to attract private sector partners in a build- operate-transfer (BOT) MRO facility in Nigeria, • Ghana is proceeding with a US$400 million MRO project in Kumasi, • ST Engineering (Singapore) has announced contracts with national airline customers in Ivory Coast, Senegal and Mauritania, • Estonia-based MRO is expanding in Africa through Direct Maintenance (Dutch) with bases in Kenya, Zambia, Zanzibar, Tanzania and Kenya, and • Kenya MRO is supported by most West African countries for the maintenance of their Boeing 737 and Embraer aircraft. Kenya Airways does line maintenance in a growing number of other African airports. Commercial Aerospace movements in South Africa: • Solenta Aviation is moving into freight conversions with Swiss specialist IPR conversions. Solenta is looking at establishing a freight conversion facility in Johannesburg, • Canadian airframer, Bombardier, plans to get closer to its customers in SA by relocating is Q Series regional support to Airways Park, close to OR Tambo International Airport, • Lufthansa Technik (LHT) is the first foreign MRO provider to set up shop in South Africa to support the Comair fleet. LHT has set-up bases in Johannesburg and Cape Town in 2019 with plans for further expansion to other national airports, and • The Paramount Group is active in the South African A&D industry and is engaged with the Saudi Arabian Military Industries (SAMI) to develop technologies and capabilities across land, sea and air-based based platforms and systems integration. In terms of technologies, Additive Manufacturing (AM) is seen as having great application in MRO. This disruptive technology, also known as 3D printing, holds promise as a cost-effective way to reproduce legacy spares, reduce inventory and manufacture parts in situ. Lufthansa Technik has already embraced the technology and set up a facility in Hamburg to expand its MRO competence and experience in this technology.

• Airport infrastructure inmost African countries is outdated and not built to serve the growing volume of passengers or cargo. Airlines and airports are often managed by government entities or regulatory bodies and foreign investment is discouraged. Modernising infrastructure and operations require investment and expertise, ideally from public-private partnerships. Africa needs to open its doors for private capital investment. • Regulation and government actions: Despite growing awareness of the role that the aviation industry could play in the development of the continent, this industry is still not a priority of Africa governments. Liberalisation will bring strong outcomes – new routes, more frequent flights, better connections and lower fares. These improvements will increase the number of passengers, which will have both direct and indirect positive effects on trade, business travel and tourism. In turn, this has impacts for the broader economy, generating more tourismrevenues, jobs andproductivity. Theywill enhance the GDP of African countries and uplift the welfare of ordinary Africans. According to an IATA survey, if just 12 key African countries opened their markets and increased connectivity, an extra 155,000 jobs and USD 1.3 billion in annual GDP would be created in those countries. A study by InterVISTAS Consulting shows that in South Africa, liberalisation could yield an estimated 15,000 new jobs and generate USD 284 million contribution to national GDP’s. In the African A&D industry, the Leonardo and Airbus are challenging the Hercules tactical airlift supremacy in Africa and making their presence felt in North Africa. Chinese military equipment is growing in Africa with two thirds of African countries operating some Chinese equipment. USA, Russia and Israel as well as Europe are the other key players in the African A&D industry. 4.3. AEROSPACE AND DEFENCE INDUSTRY: SOUTH AFRICAN CONTEXT A case for South African MRO: The growing African aerospace industry raises the question on whether the airline operators can continue to afford spending their maintenance budgets abroad while establishing their own MRO facilities is prohibitively expensive. It is evident from the that Africa embodies great potential in aircraft MRO and a number of international operators are moving in to provide

CENTURION AEROSPACE VILLAGE NPC I ANNUAL REPORT I 2020/21

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