Investe São Paulo assists American Airlines project in Guarulhos
Project involves US$ 100 million investment for the construction and purchase of equipment for a maintenance hangar that will accommodate two jets
Investe São Paulo
On Thursday, October 5, Investe São Paulo formalized its partnership with American Airlines, which was signed in March this year for the construction of the company’s first hangar outside the United States, at Guarulhos International Airport.
The announcement was made after the Ministry of Transport, Ports and Civil Aviation authorized the execution of a 39-year contract between the airport concessionaire and the US aviation company. The project’s investment amounts to more than US$ 100 million for the construction of the maintenance hangar and the purchase of equipment.
“We have been assisting American Airlines primarily in the dialogue with public entities, such as the local government, and other institutions related to the project’s infrastructure and environmental licensing matters,” said the director of Business Development of Investe SP, Sérgio Costa.
According to him, the Agency’s team will still have an extensive work with the US company for the success of the project. The construction works should be completed by mid-2018.
The hangar will be built at former Vasp’s plant, which covers an area of approximately 38,000 square meters. The hangar will be mainly used for aircraft maintenance and engine spin tests, establishing a base for the company’s operations in South America.
Currently, the company performs four to five line maintenance on its aircraft that remain out of service for approximately 14 hours in Guarulhos.
“Our aircraft maintenance staff is subject to heat, rain and any other adversity caused by changes in the weather. For this reason, this hangar will be important to our staff,” said Mario Paredes, director of line maintenance of American Airlines in Mexico, the Caribbean and Latin America, to Valor Econômico.
In a note to Istoé magazine, the CEO of GRU Airport, Gustavo Figueiredo, said that American Airlines’ decision signaled the possibility of increasing the company’s number of flights to the United States in the medium term, and will reinforce the synergy between the airlines that integrate the Oneworld Alliance and operate at the airport (Qatar Airways, Latam, British Airways, Iberia and American Airlines). The consortium also points out that in the short term, the new hangar should generate dozens of jobs, as well as maintenance know-how in the aviation area for Brazil.
About American Airlines
The American Airlines group is one of the largest airlines operating in Brazil, offering the largest number of flights to the United States in the country. The company offers more than 74 flights per week from São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Belo Horizonte.