Wadia group inks deal with S'pore Airlines unit

SIA Engineering, the aircraft maintenance arm of Singapore Airlines, said it signed a preliminary agreement with the Wadia Group of India to offer maintenance, repair and overhaul services.

SIA Engineering will form a venture, of which it will own a 51% stake, with the Wadia family, owner of GoAirlines (India) it said in a statement to Singapore's stock exchange today.

The company will offer services at eight airports in India and expand to more later  with plans to become a centre for maintenance of planes by Airbus and Boeing.

"The on-going liberalisation of India's aviation sector, coupled with the strong growth of its economy, is boosting demand for passenger and cargo air traffic,'' William Tan, chief executive of SIA Engineering, said.

"This has manifested in the expanding fleets of new generation of aircraft in the Indian sub-continent, which require the support of modern, world- class maintenance, repair and overhaul facilities,'' he added.