Thailand to take on Singapore with $8 bil airport overhaul

(May 29): Thailand is seeking to take on Singapore’s dominance in aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul with a US$5.7 billion ($7.9 billion) upgrade of a Vietnam War-era airport.

Lockheed Martin Corp.’s Sikorsky Aircraft is the latest company to study a possible increase in MRO spend in Thailand in the wake of the planned revamp of U-Tapao International Airport, said Ajarin Pattanapanchai, deputy secretary general of the nation’s Board of Investment. In March, Airbus SE signed an agreement with Thai Airways International Pcl to evaluate the development of MRO facilities at the civil-military airport near Bangkok.

"Singapore is quite tight right now," Ajarin said in an interview at Bloomberg’s Toronto office on May 25, during a visit to Canada to woo investment. "To catch up with the demand of airlines in the region – especially new demand from Myanmar, Vietnam, Cambodia – and given that we have existing strengths with automotives and engineering, Thailand will be the second choice to be the MRO hub."

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