Aviation firms work for foreign market
08.10.2009, 08:04
Holding structure may help sector out of
crisis
The big carriers that provide the full range of aviation services will find
it increasingly difficult to survive in the current crisis, the chairman of the
Bulgarian Airlines Association (ABA), Svetoslav Stanulov, told the Pari daily.
Transport should be separated from aircraft service and staff training. That
will allow spin-offs to generate their own revenue. Airlines that manage to
develop such holding structures have the chance to strengthen their positions,
both on the domestic and the foreign markets, Stanulov added. The same structure
could be successfully implemented in railways.
Currently 60% of the aviation companies' business is services for foreign
clients, because the Bulgarian market is small. There are six aircraft repair
facilities and four or five pilot training centres that cannot utilise their
full capacity.
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Another problem is the shortage of airfields for practice. The existing
airfields are far from the training centres and cannot be used efficiently. The
poor coordination among different institutions makes it extremely difficult for
schools to build their own bases.
The Bulgarian aviation sector has managed to renovate its aircraft fleet for
the past three years, despite the safeguard clause and the economic crisis,
Stanulov pointed out. Nevertheless, a comprehensive policy for development of
the sector needs to be designed. A special body needs to work out such a policy
and provide coordination between businesses and government.