SHAH ALAM: BHIC AeroServices Sdn Bhd (BHICAS) will be competing in the open tender for the maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) for helicopters operated by the Malaysian security services, said its CEO Sevvale Sarvaesvaran.

Speaking at the DSA 2024 exhibition, Sevvale said three MRO contracts will be up for open competition soon namely for the RMN Fennec, MMEA Dauphin and the Army’s MD530G light scout attack helicopter. Both the Fennec and Dauphin were previously maintained by BHICAS but are now being conducted by another company.

The MD530G helicopter maintenance is currently being conducted the Army Air Wing – Pasukan Udara Tentera Darat – since they were delivered in 2022. Spares and other stuff for the helicopters are sourced through competitions via Eperolehan.

Sevvale said they hoped to win back the Fennec and Dauphin as BHICAS has shown in the past its capabilities in maintaining the helicopters as the company is a JV company with Airbus, the OEM. BHICAS is a JV between Boustead Heavy Industries Corporation Berhad, Prestige Pillar Sdn Bhd and Airbus Helicopters Malaysia Sdn Bhd.

The company was set up in 2008 to provide the MRO services for the RMAF fleet of 12 EC725 (H225M) helicopters. BHICAS remained the MRO provider for the fleet and at DSA 2024, BHICAS was issued the LOI of RM378 million for maintenance services of the helicopters though it is unclear what is the contract period.

RMAF is responsible for first line maintenance for the EC725s while BHICAS is doing the second and third line maintenance work. Sevvale said the BHICAS engineers and technicians recently completed the installation of an e-MGB for an EC725 helicopter based at Labuan airbase. The eMGB is a new upgraded main gearbox which increases the component’s time before overhaul to 2,000hours from 1,000 hours at present.

“This was the first e-MGB installation in Asia and the second in the world. Another EC725 based at the Kuantan airbase is undergoing the same enhancement at the moment.

To enhance its MRO capability for the EC725, BHICAS hopes to set up a rotor repair shop at its workshop in Subang, Selangor. Currently the EC725 rotors -manufactured from metal and composites – are sent to France for maintenance work. With a local rotor repair shop, BHICAS could offer shorter turn-around time for its main customer, RMAF.

“We also hope to offer the same service for another EC725 user in Southeast Asia namely, Thailand,” he added. The other military users in the region include Singapore and Indonesia.

— Malaysian Defence

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