A new facility for aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services recently opened at the Subic Bay International Airport (SBIA), transforming the former U. S. Navy base into a 24/7 hub for business aviation in Asia Pacific.
Located within an 18,000 square-meter hangar, Aviation Concepts Technical Services, Inc. (ACTSI) says it hopes to become “a premier parking and MRO service provider for business jets within the region” after completing upgrades of its facilities. The company says phase one of their upgrades is complete and more are yet to come.
“With the opening of ACTSI’s facility, business jet owners and operators will now have the confidence of knowing that a world-class facility, complimented with a team of certified engineers, can now handle parking and maintenance of their aircraft,” says John O’Meara, ACTSI general manager.
Senator Richard “Dick” Gordon, who graced the launch of ACTSI’s facility recognized the value of this latest Razon & Co. investment into Subic Bay International Airport, “This is a welcome development in the Subic Bay International Airport. It would allow more executive jets to come here to be serviced. I hope the whole of Asia, especially owners and operators of private jets, will start using this airport. Now we are going to put the airport to use and hopefully, it will expand. Certainly, we want anybody who does business here to be happy.”
Atty. Wilma Eisma, Chairman and Administrator of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), said that the facility ushers new businesses for the former military airbase, which once served as a global hub for courier giant Federal Express until 2009, “We have long dreamed of developing the SBIA into a business and general aviation airport in the country, and this project is one huge step towards realizing that vision.”
She adds, “We are banking on the strategic location of Subic in the Asia Pacific region to boost SBIA’s chances to become a regional player in the MRO business.”
Along with Senator Gordon, executives from Gulfstream, Rolls Royce, Satcom Direct, JSSI, Honeywell and top aircraft management companies in Asia attended the launch held at the newly-refurbished facility.
The Subic Bay International Airport can accommodate large aircraft with the runway length of the former American airbase stands at 9,000 feet. With no slot restrictions, an average flight time to Subic is only one hour and thirty minutes from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, a three-hour flight from key Asian cities such as Singapore and Malaysia, and three hours and fifteen minutes from Indonesia and Thailand.
In addition to limited parking slots and general maintenance services required to keep aircrafts flight-ready in the region, ACTSI’s facility in Subic Bay is poised to provide solutions to issues such as corrosion and exposure to natural elements.
Led by John O’Meara, a former Gulfstream Test Pilot with over 40 years aviation experience, ACTSI has Cayman and Bermuda approvals and is currently working towards expanding its capabilities to include an FAA 145 approval.