Embraer Opens Phoenix Facility

Embraer celebrated the opening of its 47,700 square-foot (4,431 square-meter) hangar at Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, in Mesa, Ariz. last week, a facility that will be dedicated to the full-service care for the company's Phenom 100, Phenom 300, Legacy 450, Legacy 500 and Legacy 600 executive jets.
"The grand opening of this service center reinforces Embraer's long-term commitment to providing a full-service support network for its growing fleet of executive jets in North America and signals its readiness for the Phenom 100 to enter service," said Edson Carlos Mallaco,vice president, customer support and services, Executive Jets. "The Mesa facility is part of the company's investment of over $100 million in the infrastructure and organization needed to ensure convenient and efficient support and services to its executive jets customers."
The new Embraer facility consists of a hangar, workshops and office space, for an estimated investment of $10 million. The company's commitment to the community is to create approximately 60 jobs over the next five years. The first employees are already hired. By the end of September they will complete training for servicing the Phenom 100 model.
Partners in the Embraer project include the State of Arizona, the City of Mesa, and the Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport Authority.
The executive jets service center network, owned and operated by Embraer, will soon include locations at Ft. Lauderdale - Hollywood International Airport and Bradley International Airport, in Windsor Locks, Conn. Ribbon cutting ceremonies for Florida and Connecticut will also take place this fall.
Each facility will be capable of providing full-service aircraft care, including routine inspection, scheduled and unscheduled maintenance, and airframe, engine, avionics, and other systems repairs, 24/7 assistance, Aircraft On Ground (AOG) mobile rescue teams, and an inventory of expendable and repairable parts. Services may also include painting and interior refurbishments.
Embraer's authorized service center network in the U.S. is comprised of 24 locations and spans 18 states. By the end of 2008, Embraer will have seven wholly-owned (four in the U.S.) and 38 authorized service centers, worldwide.