Aerospace industry can rebound as early as next year - Azmin

 

The aerospace industry is expected to regain its pre-pandemic revenue levels as early as next year, said senior minister cum International Trade and Industry Minister Azmin Ali.

He said this is achievable if Malaysia continues to capture new work packages with a positive impact on the whole ecosystem through product localisation.

“The recovery will be expedited if the industry can further expand its air cargo services, business aviation, maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO), as well as professional training services,” he said in his keynote address at the Airbus Malaysia Connect Webinar today.

Azmin said Malaysia’s aerospace industry had been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic, with overall revenue shrinking between 20 percent and 30 percent in 2020 compared to 2019’s RM16.22 billion.

He said commercial aviation was the most impacted sub-sector due to the closure of international borders and limitation of domestic travel, while both aerospace manufacturing and MRO businesses have had orders and heavy maintenance services deferred.

“Most of the manufacturing and services activities of aerospace were halted, while some of the workforce were laid off due to the worldwide travel restrictions, grounding commercial and business aircraft.

“As aircraft manufacturers temporarily revised production rates downwards to adapt to the new depleted market environment, I am pleased to note that there are those in the supply chain ecosystem that took advantage of the demand slowdown to reset their finances in new technology and capability development,” he added.

Going forward, the minister urged the aerospace community to continue to adapt and be ready for whatever lies ahead.

“As we forge ahead to seize new opportunities, it is imperative that the government and the industry work together strategically to get this key economic sector flying high again, and soar to new levels of achievement and excellence,” he added.

- Bernama