MONTREAL - British-based firm A J Walter Aviation says it has signed a deal to buy the component repair business of insolvent aircraft maintenance firm Aveos Fleet Performance.
AJW says it will establish the Montreal facility as its new global headquarters for the maintenance, repair and overhaul of aircraft components.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but AJW said it worked closely with stakeholders to come up with a new "business structure that is both fair and commercially competitive."
"We plan to safeguard an outstanding facility and talent base that will take fresh heart from AJW's entrepreneurial ethos," AJW president Christopher Whiteside said in a release.
"Our team has been working with the chief restructuring officer and monitor, the machinist union and the Quebec government for several weeks to secure unequivocal support for our bid."
Aveos terminated about 2,600 jobs across the country, including some 1,800 in Montreal, when it suddenly obtained creditor protection and closed its operations in March.
Aveos was once Air Canada's technical services division but was later spun off as a separate company. Air Canada (TSX:AC.B) was Aveos' largest customer, providing about 90 per cent of its maintenance overhaul work.
AJW said it welcomed the chance to work more closely with the current Aveos customer portfolio, including Air Canada, and to provide its global customer base with more comprehensive services.
AJW has operations in London, Dubai, Singapore and Miami and deals with more than 700 airlines in over 100 countries.
