When the time comes round for major repairs Middle East owners have something of a fondness for having their aircraft flown back to the factory that built them, particularly where Hawker jets are concerned.
As James Dillon-Godfray, Vice President of Business Development for Marshall Aviation Services, the business aviation part of Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group, notes, this has meant that since Marshall acquired the former Beechcraft Hawker manufacturing site at Broughton, Chester, Marshall’s ties with Middle East clients have grown significantly.This, he says, is one of the major reasons why Marshall is making its debut at this year’s MEBA Conference and Exhibition. “We have a number of Middle East based Hawkers that routinely come back to where they were built. There is significant population of Hawker 125s in Saudi Arabia, for example, that come to Marshall for deep refurbishment, or for painting and upgrades because of our expert knowledge, experience and performance” he adds.
Marshall has proven capabilities in outfitting aircraft for special missions in the Middle East. “We have a number of King Airs that are used in a variety of special roles, from Medevac to surveillance. As the exclusive Beechcraft King Air distributorship for the UK, Ireland and Scandinavia – Marshall also sells new King Airs.”
“The breadth and depth of our capabilities is impressive and our ability to deliver has come from over eight decades of experience – this is why so many of our customers trust us,” Godfray comments. “We have a proven track record of meeting our customers’ requirements and our award winning teams are dedicated in delivering what we promise.”
Marshall is also fortunate in that its location at Cambridge, UK puts it close to the heart of the unofficial racehorse training capital of the world at Newmarket. Breeding thoroughbred racehorses is a passion among a number of Marshall’s Middle East clients and as Godfray points out, Marshall has a number of horse transport flights coming to its FBO (owned by Marshall’s and operated by ExecuJet) from the Middle East. “We have flights coming in and out from the region every week, bringing horses for training to the stables at Newmarket, or taking horses to races elsewhere in Europe or around the world, so equestrian activities are a very good source of business and of developing relationships with high net worth clients,” he comments.
With all this going on, taking its first ever stand at MEBA in 2014 seems a very logical move.
“There is no doubt that the MEBA market is very important for us – there is a clear demand that favours business aviation and with our experience in the conversion, modification, maintenance and support of both narrow and wide body aircraft. The Middle East is clearly one of the largest markets in the world and we will ensure that Marshall continues to play a key part” he notes..