Page 12 - AAA MARCH - APRIL 2016 Online Magazine

FEATURE RUAG AvIATION

Return of the Dornier

RUAG Aviation plans low-rate serial production of the
capable commuter and surveillance plane
By Jay Menon

AS RUAG AVIATION STARTS PUTTING started re-production of the Dornier 228NG. fuselages and wings for the Do 228.
new life into the twin turboprop Dornier 228, Now, we have decided to realign the supply “There is a lot of interest in the new
it has its sights on emerging markets in Africa, chain to start serial, rather than batch, generation aircraft and we are very proud of
Latin America and the Asia-Pacific region. production and we plan to start delivery of the good order situation, which reflects the
The Swiss airframer is conducting a the aircraft later this year,” Imke says. result of our market study and the demand
series of demo tour with the new generation RUAG assembles the Dornier 228s at its for a niche product like the Dornier 228NG,”
Dornier 228NG to promote the utility aircraft facility in Oberpfaffenhofen, near Munich, Imke says.
to several potential customers. though large elements of the work are done Japan, Australia, Mexico and Argentina are
“The Dornier 228NG is currently the most by third parties. some of the launch customers of the advanced
productive, most reliable and – with more Initially, the company intends to produce aircraft, which are being used in regional
than 350 improvements and innovations – the Dornier 228 at a rate of four aircraft per transport, in particular from STOL runways.
the most up-to-date 19 seat aircraft in the year. RUAG is building a production line to “The aircraft’s STOL capability, robust
skies,” asserts Thomas Imke, Regional Sales increase capacity, which could sustainably design and high-quality technical equipment
Director at RUAG Aviation. manufacture up to five to six aircraft per year. predestine it for operation in areas with
After selling all eight Dornier 228s batch For the eight 228s already supplied, limited airport infrastructure. The Dornier
built in a new-generation configuration, aerostructures were built by India’s state- 228NG thus enables airlines to tap into new
RUAG Aviation is reconfiguring its supply owned airframe Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. routes and markets,” he adds.
chain to deliver a minimum of four aircraft (HAL). The Swiss firms has also entered into The Dornier 228NG excels by its high
every year, beginning this year. a partnership with India’s privately owned mission flexibility, reliability and economic
“After a break of two years, we have Tata Advanced Systems Ltd. (TASL) to build efficiency in operation.

12 ASIAN AIRLINES & AEROSPACE MARCH / APRIL 2016 WWW.GBP.COM.SG/AAA