QATAR AIRWAYS APPOINTS EIRTECH AVIATION IN SEVEN YEAR CONTRACT

Ireland, 11th November 2013- Eirtech Aviation has been appointed by Qatar Airways to paint the award-winning airline’s fleet.

This is one of the Irish aviation services company’s largest contract wins, which will see the work carried out across a number of its operational bases including Shannon, Dublin, Ostrava and Rome.

The seven-year contract involves the exterior repainting of 74 of Qatar Airline’s wide and narrow body aircraft, including 49 Boeing 777s together with a number of A330s and A320s.

Eirtech Aviation was awarded the contract following the successful completion of earlier programmes in 2011 and 2013, which included painting the entire fleet of Qatar’s Airbus 340-600s.

The latest programme, which will commence immediately, will be completed using a base coat / clear coat (BC/CC) system.

Eirtech Aviation’s extensive experience, coupled with the employment of AkzoNobel’s BC/CC system, will reduce the completion time for each wide-bodied aircraft by over 25% and were significant factors in Qatar Airway’s selection of Eirtech, over other providers.

Niall Cunningham, CEO of Eirtech Aviation said, “The flexibility of our company means that our turnaround times are second to none. Client retention is vital to the global success of our business and it’s a testament to the team that we are back onboard working with such an internationally respected brand as Qatar Airways.

“Spreading the project over a number of different operational bases and over several years ensures that the scale of this contract will not impact on other clients. We have extensive facilities and the continued growth of Eirtech Aviation means we have the capacity to fulfil all client obligations – both existing and new.”

Eirtech Aviation currently operates over 20,000sqm of climate controlled narrow and wide body hangarage across four locations, using the most modern aircraft painting equipment in the world.

“A spokesperson for Qatar Airways said, “Reducing the time that aircraft are out of service for paint or repair is critical to all airlines, and its ability to reduce down time was hugely influential in our decision to continue working with Eirtech Aviation. We have exceptionally high standards and we expect similar standards from all of our suppliers, so we are extremely pleased with the partnership that has burgeoned between Ireland and the Middle East.”

The award-winning Qatar Airways has experienced rapid growth since its establishment in 1997 and currently flies 128 aircraft to over 120 destinations, with a further 244 on order. www.eirtechaviation.ie